European Parliament Approves €489 Million in EU Solidarity Fund Aid for Storm Recovery in Four Countries: Portugal to Receive €261.5 Million
The European Parliament, meeting in plenary on Wednesday, October 21, approved €489 million in aid from the EU Solidarity Fund (EUSF) for Spain, Italy, Malta and Portugal, by 651 votes to 17 with three abstentions, to help the four countries recover from severe storms and flooding earlier this year. Portugal will receive €261.5 million, of which a €65.37 million advance has already been paid.
Spain will receive €149.1 million (including a €37.26 million advance), Italy €74.9 million, and Malta €3.7 million (including a €931,014 advance). Malta and Italy requested help after storm Harry struck in January 2026, while Portugal and Spain did so after a series of storms caused severe flooding between January and February 2026.
The EUSF support helps finance emergency and recovery measures, such as restoring energy, water, wastewater, telecommunications and transport infrastructure, funding health and education services, and covering clean-up operations, temporary accommodation, rescue services and measures to secure preventive infrastructure and protect cultural heritage. Parliament also noted that actions financed under the fund should continue to be adequately financed under the next EU long-term budget. Since its creation in 2002, the fund has provided more than €11 billion across 150 disaster events. (Compiled from the European Parliament's October 21 plenary release)
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 法国 Strasbourg 的欧洲议会半圆形会议厅实景。图片来源：Wikimedia Commons 文件 European Parliament Strasbourg Hemicycle - Diliff.jpg，Diliff 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0 授权
