Draft:Continental diagonal

The Continental Diagonal is the name given to a cross-border strip of territory running through Portugal , Spain and France , whose main common characteristics are a low population density, a significant rural economy (compared to the average of their respective countries), weak industrialisation and a traditionally insufficient communications network which has produced relative isolation. It is also defined by opposition to the more dynamic, densely populated and richer areas of the European Union that surround it.

The following regions may be included in this strip of territory:

France: Champagne-Ardenne , Burgundy , Auvergne , Limousin , Midi-Pyrénées and Aquitaine.

Spain: Aragon , Castile and Leon , Castile-La Mancha and Extremadura.

Portugal: Alentejo , part of the North and part of the Center.

It is one of the eight major European regions identified in the European Commission's reports on transnational dynamics and cross-border relations in Europe.