Summary:

European Union area is particular for its enormous diversity and cultural heterogeneity, which are potentially the most significant development factors in the region. EU spatial development policies play an increasingly important role in all working areas. Even if the objectives related to most important political aspects are not directly related to spatial management, spatial issues are always kept in mind. By exerting impact on spatial structure, the European Union attempts at maintaining and strengthening regional diversity, which is important for the pro-tection of cultural landscapes.
The article presents the European Spatial Development Perspective, whose main role is to ensure diversity within the European Union area, because none of the activities related to spatial or settlement structure should lead to local or re-gional homogeneity. The analysis particularly focuses on cultural landscapes, which play an increasingly important role in EU spatial planning.