TIRANA (dpa-AFX) – At a summit in Albania, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) once again called for six Balkan states to be admitted to the European Union as quickly as possible. “It is very clear to me that 20 years after the accession of these countries was promised, it must soon be time for this to happen,” said Scholz on Monday in the Albanian capital Tirana. In addition to Albania, this includes Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.
All six Western Balkan countries are aiming to join the EU, but are at different stages. The summit took place as part of the so-called Berlin Process, which was led by the then Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) was launched in 2014 to bring states closer to the EU. For the first time, the summit is now taking place in one of the Western Balkan states.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the meeting sent a strong message of commitment to enlargement. Access to the internal market should be greater. But reforms are also needed. Anyone who is willing to do so will also receive funds from the EU for investments. “Our doors are open,” said von der Leyen. But she also emphasized: “More needs to be done.” The economies of the EU and the Western Balkans are still too far apart. EU Council President Charles Michel specified a period until 2030 for the six countries to be admitted.
Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama warned in his opening speech that the countries inside and outside the EU were drifting apart. “We should think about alternative ways to bridge existing divisions,” he said. Since a lot of time passes between the start of accession negotiations and the implementation of accession, Rama suggested the creation of an “observer status in the EU”. This status should bring certain benefits to the country in question, although no voting rights in the EU bodies. “This would strengthen political unity within a democratic Europe and the accountability of governments and administrations within the Western Balkans,” he added.
In his speech at the summit, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti brought up the recent attack by Serbian paramilitaries in northern Kosovo. A Kosovar police officer and three Serbian intruders were killed in the fighting on September 24th in the town of Banjska. “Kosovo is still threatened by an invasion from Serbia,” he said, according to an English version of the speech distributed by the Prime Minister’s Office in Pristina. “This act requires us to reflect on this and not simply carry on as before. Such acts must not go unpunished.”
Kosovo, which is now almost exclusively inhabited by Albanians, declared itself independent in 2008. More than 100 countries, including Germany, but not Serbia, Russia and China, recognize the new state. Serbia demands the return of its former province. EU-mediated talks to normalize relations that have been ongoing for years have so far produced few tangible results./mfi/DP/stw