The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is one of the European Union’s most successful instruments at the heart of the European project: playing a vital role in safeguarding the livelihoods of farmers, sustaining the profitability of agricultural enterprises, upholding food security, maintaining the highest quality standards, and preserving the long-term prosperity of rural communities. We acknowledge CAP as a strategic European Policy which is essential to safeguard Europe’s strategic autonomy and economic security. It should therefore be adequately funded with a fair support distribution among and within Member States and maintain its commonality and integrity. We support a simplified and flexible model, built on incentives rather than bureaucratic burdens. We support a reinforced role for local and regional authorities in CAP implementation, thus ensuring that policies reflect the realities and needs of territories and communities. We create strong complementarity regarding the interventions of both different European funding as well as national, regional, and local sources, while safeguarding the ‘commonness’ of the CAP. We provide comprehensive rural development as a key driver for jobs, for the economy and for attractive vital rural areas that ensure citizens ‘right to stay’. In regions bordering Russia, maintaining populated rural areas is furthermore essential for ensuring Europe’s security and providing a line of defence. We ensure a productive, competitive and sustainable agriculture throughout the entire EU. We recognise the environmental contribution of rural areas: the efforts of farmers and livestock breeders in the ecological transition, their role in preserving nature and biodiversity, and their contribution to carbon capture. We advocate an agri-food supply chain that prevents unfair trading practices, ensures fair prices, and guarantees healthy and high-quality food. We will safeguard food production in Europe. We will demand greater reciprocity in trade agreements with third countries, promoting alignment with the EU’s environmental, food-security, and animal-welfare standards whilst strengthening phytosanitary controls at our borders. We continue market-oriented agriculture with common European rules and standards while securing the sector’s competitiveness at international and global level. We will apply scientific principles to combat pests and enhance production, making sure that environmental rules are realistic, and that European agriculture remains competitive. We will propose measures to better adapt to and mitigate the effects of climate change, including an adequately funded agricultural crisis reserve capable of responding swiftly to market fluctuations and natural disasters whilst also promoting a European agricultural insurance scheme. We will promote effective measures to encourage young people to enter the agricultural and fisheries sectors, facilitating access to credit, training, land, and farm transfers, thus revitalising rural areas and ensuring their long-term sustainability. We support the protection of livestock from wildlife, particularly from large carnivores, to ensure coexistence in rural areas, working in collaboration with the hunting sector. We recognise the key role of regional and local governments in fostering innovation in the agri-food sector, ensuring that digitalisation and new technologies reach all farmers and rural communities. Innovation is key to enhancing the competitiveness, sustainability, and resilience of the agri-food sector. We will promote advancements in biotechnology to improve the efficient use of natural resources and facilitate the adoption of sustainable farming practices. We will strengthen investment in digital infrastructure in rural areas. Water is an essential resource for ensuring quality of life, food security, economic development, and territorial cohesion. Without effective management, the scarcity water as well as associated risks such as droughts and floods threaten Europe's social, economic, and environmental sustainability. We believe that the water crisis is not only a challenge for Southern Europe but an issue affecting the entire Union. The European Water Resilience Strategy must be an urgent priority to address water scarcity, pollution, and related risks—such as droughts and floods—in a coordinated manner, while strengthening water governance. We support increased investment in, and the strengthening of, water infrastructure to address these challenges. This includes the modernisation, maintenance, and optimisation of existing systems to ensure a reliable supply of drinking water for the population and sufficient water resources for agriculture and industry. We recognise innovation as a key tool for tackling water challenges. Digitalisation and artificial intelligence can transform water management, making its use more efficient and sustainable. Likewise, advanced purification technologies and water reuse solutions in agriculture and industry are essential to reducing reliance on natural sources. We call for the European Union to take a proactive role in this area by providing dedicated funding and financial support for these initiatives, recognising water stress