Page 12 - bne IntelliNews 26th May

Southeast Europe
May 26, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 12
Western Balkan PMs confirm full commitment to EU integration
bne IntelliNews
Prime ministers from the six Western Balkan countries confirmed their full commitment to keep working towards EU integration at an informal gathering hosted by EU foreign policy chief Fed- erica Mogherini on May 24.
The EU has put further enlargement on a back burner in recent years, focusing instead on internal issues such as the debt crisis, the influx of refu- gees and most recently Brexit. This has resulted
in discouragement within some Western Balkan countries who see their prospects of EU accession increasingly far off and have consequently been less inclined to push ahead with reforms required by the EU.
The gathering was attended by Prime Minister
of Montenegro Dusko Markovic, outgoing Prime Minister of Kosovo Isa Mustafa, Prime Minister of Albania Edi Rama, Prime Minister of Serbia Alek- sandar Vucic, Prime Minister-designate of Macedo- nia Zoran Zaev, and Bosnia & Herzegovina Council of Ministers Chairman Denis Zvizdic. The purpose of the event was “to discuss the way forward for the region's EU membership perspective”, a notice on the website of the EU said on May 24.
Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Albania have the status of EU candidate countries. Bosnia and Kosovo are potential candidates.
All six prime ministers said they were fully commit- ment to the EU integration process, “as confirmed by the EU at the March 2017 European Council”.
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini.
“They reiterated their determination and strong shared interest in strengthening cooperation and bringing about tangible results for the lives of
the citizens of the region. They emphasised their commitment to good neighbourly relations and deepening regional understanding, through mutual respect and cooperation,” the statement said.
High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Secu- rity Policy/Vice-President of the European Commis- sion Mogherini encouraged the six prime ministers to speed up the necessary work in order to meet their citizens' expectations and move closer to their EU future.
The meeting in Brussels comes a week after international pressure has led to breakthroughs
in resolving the political crises in Macedonia and Albania. On May 17, Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov gave the mandate to form a new government to Social Democrat leader Zaev, after months of procrastination. On May 18, Albania’s biggest oppo- sition party, the Democratic Party (DP), decided to participate in the upcoming general election, after threatening a boycott that would have seriously undermined the legitimacy of the vote.
Tensions had also increased between Albanians on the one hand, and Serbs and Macedonians on the other, following a comment from Albanian Prime Minister Rama on a possible union between Alba- nia and Kosovo. On April 19, Rama told Politico that that a union between Albania and Kosovo couldn’t be ruled out if prospects for EU membership fade.