Page 16 - bne IntelliNews newspaper 14 July 2017

Southeast Europe
July 14, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 16
Despite this, EU leaders struggled to reassure the six Western Balkans countries that accession is still in their future.
All six countries from the region are keen to join the EU, and are at varying stages in the accession process — ranging from Montenegro which has most of its accession negotiation chapters already opened, to Kosovo which has been unable to apply for membership as five EU countries do not rec- ognise it as an independent state.
However, as the EU has focussed on other issues such as the migration crisis, the Greek debt crisis, and Brexit recently, the impetus for further expan- sion of the bloc has faded. This has led to a crisis in confidence in the region, with some politicians increasingly disinclined to make reforms and yield to persuasion from Brussels.
Turkey to buy Russian SA-21 Growler missile defence system for $2.5bn
bne IntelliNews
Turkey has agreed to pay $2.5bn to acquire Rus- sia’s advanced S-400 surface-to-air missile sys- tem (the “SA-21 Growler”), in a move that could upset the country’s Nato allies.
The preliminary agreement sees Turkey receiving two S-400 missile batteries from Russia within the next year, and then producing another two inside Turkey, according to a Bloomberg source.
The Russian system would not be compatible with other Nato defence systems, but also would not be subject to the same constraints imposed by the alliance, the official said.
In its closing statement, the summit’s host Italy stressed that accession still lay ahead for coun- tries in the region. Prime Minister Paolo Genti- loni said that the EU must keep its doors open to membership for the six Western Balkan countries or risk allowing Russia and other global powers to increase their influence in the region.
Earlier, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has been one of the initiators of the Berlin process aimed at integrating the Western Balkans with the EU, said it was the bloc’s duty to bring countries from the region "slowly but surely” towards accession.
Regular summits bringing together the EU and aspiring members from the region will continue. The UK has agreed to host the EU-Western Bal- kans summit next year, even though it is planning its own exit from the European Union.
Two of Russia’s advanced S-400 surface-to-air missile system will be bought from Russia and another two will be produced in Turkey
The Russian deal would allow Turkey to deploy the missile defence systems anywhere in the country, the source added.
For Ankara, the key aspect of the deal is transfer of technology, the official said.
“Turkey wants to be able to produce its own advanced defence systems, and the Russian agreement to allow two of the S-400 batteries to be produced in Turkey would serve that aim,” the source told the news service.
According to the Turkish official, Ankara and Mos-