The Secretary of State for Territorial Policy, Arcadi Spain, has today presided over the 66th plenary session of the Conference for Matters Related to the European Union (CARUE), a body of cooperation between the General Administration of the State (AGE) and the autonomous communities in European affairs.

The meeting was also attended by the Secretary of State for the European Union, Fernando Sampedro, thus strengthening coordination between the different levels of the AGE in the monitoring and definition of the Spanish position before the European institutions.

The session allowed to address key issues of the current European debate, with special attention to the future Multiannual Financial Framework 2028-2034 and cohesion policy, as well as other issues of strategic relevance for the State and for the autonomous communities.

The meeting also addressed the EU’s response to the US tariff policy, industrial policy and the fair transition and also presented options for autonomous participation in projects promoted within the framework of the OECD, along with initiatives linked to the localization of the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda.

The Ministry of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory has also reported on the agreement reached for the participation of the autonomous communities in the Executive Committees of the European Commission in the period 2026-2029. This unanimous agreement reached between the State and the autonomous communities strengthens multi-level cooperation and territorial presence in European decision-making.

The Secretary of State for Territorial Policy, Arcadi Spain, stressed that “European construction will only be solid if it incorporates the voice of the territories. The autonomous communities are not secondary actors, but protagonists in the implementation of European policies, therefore, they must be an active part in their definition.”

He also stressed that “loyal cooperation between the State and the autonomous communities strengthens Spain’s position in Europe and ensures that the decisions taken in Brussels respond to the diversity and territorial reality of our country.” He also highlighted the Spanish Government’s agreement with the European Committee of the Regions, a Community body with which it shares analyses and proposals for the next Multiannual Financial Framework.

The Secretary of State for the EU, Fernando Sampedro, has also stressed that “cooperation at all levels, from local and regional to national, is fundamental to build the strengthened, sovereign and competitive Europe that Spain promotes”.

“Spain strongly supports a truly ambitious European budget, which defends the Cohesion Policy, the CAP, the role of the regions and the specificities of the Outermost Regions, in line with the position adopted by the Autonomous Communities in Santiago de Compostela last October,” added Sampedro.

The Government of Spain has reiterated its commitment to dialogue, institutional loyalty and the active participation of the autonomous communities in the formation of the Spanish position before the European Union, at a key moment for the future of European policies and their direct impact on the territories.