Transport and logistics system of Ukraine is a circulatory system of the economy. In the conditions of war, it plays a vital role in the delivery of humanitarian, social, food, energy, and, above all, military aid to Ukraine. The ability of the national transport network to provide reliable just-in-time shipment of goods in the required quantity to the end consumers and the interoperability level of the national and European transport systems today are the factors influencing the risk formation processes on a global scale. The war in Ukraine has brought about rapid changes in shipping and logistics, as well as in the structure and volume of international and transit cargo flows. In 2019-2021, about 20-25% of cargo transportation by road transport in international traffic was carried out through the territory of russia and belarus; more than two-thirds of goods crossing (in physical terms) the customs border of Ukraine were sold through sea checkpoints. However, in 2022, compared to the previous year, the number of vehicles that crossed the customs border of Ukraine with EU countries has increased by 21%, especially with Romania - by 64%. Automobile transport became the leader in terms of the volume of imports brought into the country, and railway transport took the second place. The rapid growth in the volume of rail and road freight transportation to Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania has significantly increased the burden on the transport and border infrastructure of the border regions of Ukraine. In such conditions, the available capacity of the transport and logistics infrastructure in the Ukraine-EU cross-border space proved to be insufficient. Therefore, the article offers a methodical approach to the analysis of the logistics and transport infrastructure of the border regions of Ukraine, taking into account the peculiarities and prospects of its operation at the international (European), national, and regional levels. The components of the logistics and transport infrastructure are defined, and the integral indices of the logistics and transport infrastructure are calculated. Ways of efficient realization of the capacity and the development of the transport and logistics infrastructure of the border regions of Ukraine are suggested. 

logistics and transport infrastructure, methodical approach, border regions, Ukraine, European Union 

An integral part of the implementation of any reform is the emergence of the risks of its negative impact on one or another area of region development. The decentralization reform in Ukraine is not an exception. In its the context the most probable occurrence of negative phenomena is in the border regions, which could be prevented by first detecting them. In the scientific article, the authors focus on the analysis of a number of challenges for the development of border regions in the context of decentralization reform. Given the territorial remoteness of the central regions of the country and the capital, which today serve as areas of concentration of investment and economic activity, the border regions traditionally (this is typical for the border areas of the EU member states) lag behind the rest of the regions by the main socio-economic indicators of development. Among the main challenges facing the border regions of Ukraine today are the following: the provision of competitiveness in the context of European integration processes and reduction of the border barrier function; low level of economic security; the outflow of human capital and the issue of ethnic minorities. Based on an expert survey of representatives of the fifteen united territorial communities (UTCs), the possibility of such risks of decentralization in the border regions were defined as following: groundless use of local budget funds; emergence of significant imbalances between delegated new authority and available financial resources of the community; increasing uneven development of territories within the community; increasing uneven development of communities within the country; deterioration of the availability and quality of providing educational and medical services; deterioration of the quality of local government; reducing of the state influence on the management of local development processes; radicalization of political unions representing the interests of ethnic minorities in places of their compact residence; further economic decline of the territory of communities and so on. 

challenges of border regions’ development, risks of decentralization, decentralization reform, border regions, regional policy, united territorial communities 

The results of experts’ survey of local authorities’ representatives regarding the issues of social and economic development of border oblasts under the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement are outlined. The Agreement influence on the development of regions (cities) of border oblasts is evaluated. The spheres most influenced by the Agreement according to experts are examined. Respondents’ evaluation of the Agreement advantages is studied. The types of economic activities that are believed by experts to obtain the most advantages due to DCFTA introduction are defined. Structural changes in exports and imports of goods and services under the Agreement as well as exports geographic structure are evaluated according to experts’ opinions. The list of countries, cooperation with which is seen as most perspective for the development of respective regions (cities), is formed. Assessment of the instruments of social and economic development promotion is outlined. 

European integration processes, border oblasts, social and economic development, EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, experts’ assessment, Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area 

The features of a modern development of cross-border cooperation (CBC) are investigated in this paper. Besides, the indicators of asymmetry in the adjacent border regions of Ukraine and neighbouring countries with are presented. The results of the expert survey on competent persons of the CBC (local government representatives from 16 border regions of Ukraine) are shown; the trends and directions of development of cross-border regions with the participation of Ukraine are outlined. In particular, the assessment of the development level of CBC by economic activities is given; the efficacy of CBC forms are defined for their impact on the development of the region; the activity level of individual subjects and participants of CBC is defined; the main obstacles to its development are highlighted; the economic activities to be developed primarily in the context of cross-border regions are outlined; the sources of information support of regional authorities within the CBC are researched; the distribution channels of information on development opportunities of CBC by regional authorities among its members and actors are presented.
It is investigated that today according to only about half of the respondents cross-border cooperation is actively developing. The most effective forms of cross-border cooperation in their impact on regional development here is the cross-border projects and an agreements on cross-border cooperation. Cross-border innovation structures, cross-border clusters and Euroregions don’t play a weighty role in the development of border regions. However, the formation and establishment of operation of new forms of cross-border cooperation will boost investment inflows into the economy of the border area and effective use of their potential.
The trends of preserving the strengthening role of individual participants of CBC (NGOs) are found in order to strengthen cross-border interactions and overcome the institutional gaps in the formation of new forms of networked interactions in cross-border area. The European experience of using the possibilities of Euro-regional cooperation will expand the circle of participants in cooperation of adjacent areas and diversify the mechanisms and instruments of such cooperation. In summary, in the Ukraine the information exchange system between Ukrainian and foreign partners is poorly established, which hinders their effective interaction. The low level of information support for CBC on the part of central government, insufficiently informed general public, etc., all together causes low activity of CBC’ subjects.
The problems of discrepancies in the legislation and frequent changes in the leadership of local authorities in cross-border areas involving border areas of EU Member States are substantial obstacles to cross-border cooperation. Setting up an efficient information system for all subjects and the participants of cross-border cooperation will contribute to levelling the existing barriers and will open new possibilities for enhancing cooperation in the cross-border regions (in particular by monitoring the situation on cross-border markets, preventing threats to the economic security of the border region, etc.).
The paper suggests the immediate steps to enhance the CBC involving all border regions of Ukraine. 

cross-border cooperation, cross-border regions, border regions, CBC forms 

While adopting efficient mechanisms for economic development, Ukraine participated in the creation of ten Euroregions. Currently, their activities over two decades bring no results that were observed in the EU. Therefore there is a need to search for new ways to enhance Euroregional cooperation and to efficiently use the cross-border opportunities in order to optimize the positive impact of Euroregional cooperation in the Ukrainian cross-border regions. The features of cross-border cooperation within the Euroregions of Ukraine using generalized approaches to the Euroregional cooperation analysis have been described in the article. The author has calculated the general integral index of socio-economic development of cross-border regions that are the part of Euroregions based on the methods for determining reference values, calculating standardized partial indices, and the average indices. It has also been suggested to combine these two approaches to assess the Euroregional cooperation development. The attention in the paper has been focused on the analysis of Euroregional cooperation in accordance with the criteria and indicators groups defined by the author. It has been determined that the development of Euroregional cooperation was sustained primarily due to: imperfect legal framework; structural disparities between the regions; inefficient mechanisms of interaction between central, regional, and local authorities; substantial differentiation of the regions in terms of economic development and society standard of living; underestimation of Euroregional cooperation as an important tool to enhance the development of the cross-border regions; low rate of cross-border infrastructure, etc. The problems of Euroregional cooperation development have been also revealed and immediate steps to enhance its impact on the cross-border regions of Ukraine have been suggested, namely: improvement of the legal framework; provision of operation of the Interdepartmental Commission for support of cross-border cooperation and Euroregions on permanent basis; involvement of the Euroregions associations’ representatives to the operation of Interdepartmental Commission for support of cross-border cooperation; drafting the development strategies for each Euroregion; reorganization of Euroregions using individual approach to every European region; creating a contract platform between the Euroregions on the border with the EU member countries and the Euroregions with the EU non-member countries. The author has remarked enhancement in the intensification of Euroregional cooperation in the next program period for 2014-2020 in view of progress in improving the legal framework for cross-border cooperation, in increase of the number of cross-border technical assistance programs intending to be participated by the Euroregions, signing new inter-regional cooperation and partnership agreements, etc. 

cross-border cooperation, euroregional cooperation, border region, criteria for evaluating euroregional cooperation