The process for the accession of the Western Balkans to the European Union has been “of particular concern recently, for both Europe and Greece,” Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis said at the ministerial meeting of the “Friends of the Western Balkans Group” held on Tuesday in Bratislava.

“The accession prospects of the Western Balkans are of vital importance both for the peoples of the Western Balkans and for the European Union itself – a European Union that is larger, stronger, and more resilient, which will include all peoples, especially the Western Balkans, a region with a difficult history, a history of nationalism, wars, and conflicts,” he said.

“It is extremely important that we are able to encourage this process, within the framework of the criteria set by EU law itself: respect for the European acquis, full respect for international law, and for good neighborly relations. Greece has undertaken an extensive initiative. It is the country that is accelerating the accession of the Western Balkans. The agreement, the Delphi Declaration, has already been signed,” he pointed out.

Greece, he added, is the country that encourages the accession of the Western Balkans. “It is the immediate neighbor, the country of the region that has been longest in the European Union. We consider it extremely critical and important for Greece to be present in this discussion,” he underlined.

“It is important for the EU to become, under conditions that present many and difficult challenges, a true union of all the peoples of Europe.”

In the context of Greece’s leading role in the process for the accession of the Western Balkan countries, he noted that Greece will undertake a series of initiatives, including visits by the Foreign Minister to Western Balkan countries and hosting the next meeting of the Friends of the Western Balkans.

“The coming period, the coming months, are extremely critical, especially ahead of Greece’s assumption of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2027, a period during which we believe the discussion on the accession of the Western Balkans can move substantially forward,” he concluded.