ZAGREB, 14 Oct (Hina) – Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Monday that the Berlin Process was important for the Western Balkan countries and their getting closer to the European Union.
“This format, initiated by the then Chancellor Angela Merkel, in some way compensated for the lack of meetings at the highest level between the leaders of the key countries of the European Union and the countries of the Western Balkans,” Plenković said after the 10th Berlin Process Summit on the Western Balkans.
The Berlin Process has accelerated the process of bringing the Western Balkan countries closer to the European Union and the implementation of the necessary reforms, he added.
“The main task of the Berlin Process has been, and remains, to keep the six Southeast European countries on the reform path and on track to the European Union, and this has been achieved,” Plenković said.
He noted that Croatia generates €7 billion in trade with the six Western Balkan countries, namely Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.
Speaking at a joint press conference with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the summit’s host, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, said that the EU integration process of the Western Balkan countries should be accelerated.
I hope we won’t have to wait for another ten years before all six countries of the Western Balkans join the European Union, he said, emphasising that only together can these countries join the bloc.
We need to give all these countries the same perspective, but there will be countries that will meet the membership criteria faster than others and we must not hold them back. But all the countries must know that they have a common future and that they cannot block each other, Scholz said.
He criticised Serbia and Kosovo over the stalemate in normalising their relations.
I am asking both sides to stick to what has been agreed, Scholz said, adding that nationalist tendencies can also be seen in other countries in the region.
The six Western Balkan countries today signed agreements on an action plan for a common regional market and an agreement on mobility in the academic exchange sector.
In addition to the six countries, the summit was also attended by Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, France, Germany and Poland. The participants supported the continuation of this format and further efforts to strengthen the common market, promote reform processes and remove barriers between the members of this initiative.
