Leaders from EU member states met today in Brdo, Slovenia with the heads of the executives of the six Western Balkan economies to discuss the region’s European perspective.
At the start of the summit, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said that enlargement is a common interest of the entire bloc. In addition, Von der Leyen vowed for €30 billion in investments for the region in the upcoming 7 years aimed at pandemic recovery and accelerating the transition toward renewable energy.
“This is a very important summit with the Western Balkans. We want to send a very clear message and that message is: The Western Balkans belong to the European Union. We want them in the European Union. We are one European family, we share the same history and values, and I am deeply convinced that we share destiny too. The six Western Balkan countries have come a long way, they’ve done enormous efforts and reforms. I know that still, work has to be done, for example on the rule of law, on the judiciary, freedom of the media. But we must also acknowledge the efforts that have been done in the past and the progress”, said Von der Leyen.
The Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, said he was not satisfied with the stance maintained by Bulgaria on North Macedonia, a decision that is also impeding negotiations with Albania.
“We must wait for elections in Bulgaria, but I am not satisfied with the fact that the launch of the membership talks with North Macedonia is still blocked. I think it must be unblocked as soon as possible. We know that will happen, with much hope, after the elections in Bulgaria. We will try to do everything we can to achieve that”, said PM Rutte.
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said that if the EU does not offer any serious perspective to the region, then they must be aware that other great powers, such as Russia, China, or Turkey will try to fill in that void.
Among the most skeptic seemed French President Emmanuel Macron. After the informal dinner of EU and Western Balkan top state officials, Macron declared that the “bloc must do more to manage the crisis on its borders”.
At the end of the summit, EU leaders are expected to adopt a statement that will also be signed by the heads of the Western Balkan countries.
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