The EU-Western Balkans summit will take place anyway. Following a threatening veto by Bulgaria, the leaders of the three western Balkan states of Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia have now decided to participate.
“We will participate in the EU Council,” Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. They wanted to be heard in Brussels, Rama continued. The representatives of the three countries wanted to use the podium to express their views on “Promoting the European spirit and our abduction by Bulgaria, which is destroying it”. Serbian President Aleksadar Vucic also agreed to attend, as reported by Tanjug news agency.
Top on shaky legs
In several statements on Tuesday, Rama and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic have considered staying away from the so-called EU Western Balkans Summit next Thursday in Brussels. In a televised interview, the President of North Macedonia, Stevo Pendarovski, also advised Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski to stay at home.
Groundbreaking for EU accession
The EU-Western Balkans summit starts this Thursday in Brussels and will, among other things, discuss the EU accession perspectives of the participating states. In addition to Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Montenegro have also been invited. All six countries are at different stages in the process of rapprochement with the EU.
A regular EU summit will begin immediately after the Western Balkans summit. During this meeting, it will be decided, among other things, whether Ukraine and Moldova should be granted EU candidate status. The condition for accession negotiations is that they can start at a certain time if certain criteria are met.
Source: Krone
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
