BELGRADE – The Transport Community has organised two study visits aimed at supporting Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova in advancing their alignment with EU transport standards in the railway and inland waterway sectors. The two events gathered almost 30 professionals in total who had a change to gain valuable insights from their colleagues from the Western Balkans and the EU.
From 26 to 28 November 2025, the Transport Community welcomed 17 representatives of Ukrainian and Moldovan institutions and railway companies to Belgrade, where Serbia’s institutions shared their knowledge and practical experience in the transposition and implementation of EU railway legislation.
The programme covered a broad range of topics, including the transposition and implementation of the EU acquis, Serbia’s railway reform and market opening, implementation of Technical Specifications for Interoperability (TSIs), development of TEN-T railway projects, and the institutional roles of the Railway Directorate and the Centre for Investigation of Accidents in Transport. Participants also took part in an on-site visit to the intermodal terminal in Batajnica, gaining first-hand insight into intermodal freight development.
In parallel, from 25 to 27 November 2025, the Permanent Secretariat of the Transport Community hosted 11 participants from Ukraine’s waterborne transport sector and 5 representatives from the Republic of Moldova for the study visit “Advancing Inland Waterway Transport Governance and Management in Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova” which took place in Vienna. During this visit, Austrian institutions and experts shared best practices on governance, safety, environmental sustainability, digitalisation, and legislative alignment with the EU acquis.
Participants also took part in a technical visit to the Gabčíkovo Lock in the Slovak Republic, gaining insights into inland waterway infrastructure management. The study visit was organised back-to-back with the Final Conference of the #GreenInlandPortsEU project, underlining the importance of sustainability in Europe’s inland ports.
These initiatives clearly demonstrate the value of regional cooperation and knowledge-sharing. They strengthen institutional capacity, support the modernisation of transport systems in line with EU standards, and further deepen the integration of Ukraine and Moldova into the wider European transport network.
The Transport Community extends its sincere thanks to all institutions that contributed to the success of these exchanges.
The study visits are financed by the European Union under the grant NDICI-GEO-NEAR/2023/452688 to the Permanent Secretariat of the Transport Community, supporting preparatory activities for the progressive involvement of Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, and Ukraine in the activities of the Transport Community.
