Thewesternbalkans
On Monday 14 of October 2024, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz welcomed the heads of six Western Balkan countries during a Berlin summit aimed at forging closer ties between those nations and the EU and marked a decade since the format was launched in 2014.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, representatives from nine EU member states (including Bulgaria), and international organisations also participated in the meetings.
The aim of the summit is to gradually bring Serbia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and Republic of North Macedonia closer to EU membership.
Of those six countries, only Kosovo is not an official EU membership candidate country.
The 27-member bloc has not admitted a new member since Croatia in 2013.
At the summit, an Action plan for a common regional market and a new Mobility agreement, including access to higher education, have been signed.
EU officials have said in the past that the war in Ukraine and other geopolitical concerns highlight the importance of a strategic partnership between the EU and the Balkans.
The Chair’s Conclusions, (adopted at each annual Summit) were also published. According to the document, “participants summarised developments, challenges and prospects for regional cooperation in the Western Balkans as a step toward the region’s gradual integration into European Union rules and regulations”.
And also: “On the 10th anniversary of the launching of the Berlin Process in 2014, the Heads of Government of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, as well as the representatives of Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Slovenia, the United Kingdom, and representatives of the European Union (EU) and of international and regional bodies and organisations as well as financial institutions met in person in Berlin on 14 October 2024 for the Summit Meeting of the Berlin Process. Hungary in its capacity as rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union was invited as an observer.”
The participants emphasised the need for increased regional cooperation through the Common Regional Market (CRM), which is an integral part of the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, as the key to promoting economic growth and improving living conditions in the region. Against this background the participants warmly welcomed the new Action Plan for the CRM 2025-2028, endorsed by the leaders of the Western Balkans Six. It is a cornerstone document that builds on the successes and previous implementations achieved by the CRM and that will further deepen regional economic integration, based on EU rules and standards.
“The participants welcomed the recommendations from the Civil Society and Think Tank Forum and underlined the need for the role of civil society in building a strong democracy and prosperity in the Western Balkans”, reads the 13th conclusion.
Last week, Civil Societies demanded Berlin Process leaders to adopt specific conclusions to abstain from all types of direct and indirect oppressions towards civil society. The official document does not contain the proposed conclusions.
According to the 16th conclusion, the Western Balkans Six participants underlined their commitment to regional cooperation in an agreed Joint Declaration to reaffirm good neighbourly relations and regional cooperation. “The Western Balkan Six participants acknowledged that dialogue and constructive approaches are key to address unresolved bilateral issues. They recalled the commitments made by the Leaders of the Western Balkans Six and participating countries at the Berlin Process Summit in Vienna 2015 as well as at the Summit in London in 2018, such as resolving bilateral questions in a spirit of good neighbourliness”, this conclusion reads.
Other conclusions covered the areas of Youth, Science and Education, Connectivity and Transport, Energy, Climate policy and Green Agenda, Food and Agriculture, Social policy, Inclusion, Gender and Equality, Migration and Security.
“The participants agreed that an important building block in the fight against irregular migration is to provide greater support to the countries of the Western Balkans in the area of return. The participants welcomed the Western Balkans partners’ progress on harmonizing their visa policies with the EU Visa policy, in particular regarding the list of visa-free and visa required third countries and agreed that further progress in this regard is needed.
The participants expressed the need for exchange of information and best practices on the collection of migration data, as well as that capacity building, especially in the area of border management, is a proven means to support the Western Balkans region. To improve effectiveness and avoid creating duplicate structures, participants will better coordinate measures in this area.
On security – “the participants highlighted the need to strengthen the already established contacts between law enforcement authorities and examine ways of automated data exchange. The participants agreed on continuing to pursue the “follow the money” approach in the area of money laundering so that law enforcement authorities can identify, freeze and seize criminal assets.
The participants noted that greater international cooperation, on both political and operational level, is indispensable as a response to the transnational networks of organised crime and acknowledged the linkages between gender-based violence and organised crime and instability.
The participants welcomed the significant progress achieved during the five years of the Western Balkans Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) Control Roadmap. The participants commended the authorities of the Western Balkans Six for the strong ownership and commitment, reinforced through the agreement on the revised text of the Roadmap for the implementation 2025-2030, which was consolidated at the SALW Control Roadmap Regional Coordination Meeting in Podgorica on 10 July 2024.
In light of the increase of hybrid threats, the participants agreed on the need to step up efforts to foster cyber resilience in a whole of region, government and society approach. They recalled that dedicated activities including capacity building in the realm of cyber diplomacy as well as incident response are key, also in light of the Joint Partnership for Strengthening Cyber Resilience in the Western Balkans established in the Berlin Process in 2022.
In conclusion, the participants stressed the wish for the continuation of the Berlin Process in order to harness the full potential of improved and inclusive regional cooperation.
In his intervention, Minister Doughty, UK Minister of State for Europe, North America and Overseas Territories, outlined UK support for the Western Balkans and calls for a strong and connected Europe.
The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen pointed out that “the EU enlargement is very much at the top of our agenda. When we are looking towards the future we are looking at a future where all six Western Balkan partners are part of our European Union. To get there, I believe we must draw on the lessons of the 2004 enlargement. The first precondition is alignment with our core European values: the respect for democracy and the rule of law. And the second precondition is early economic integration.
Bulgaria will not give unconditional support to the EU integration of the Western Balkans, amid constant conflicts between the institutions in Sofia and Skopje, caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev, said in Berlin on Monday.
Bulgaria’s relationship with North Macedonia has reached a new low since the nationalist VMRO-DPMNE party came to power.
“Each country that is a candidate for EU membership must have its own merits for its participation in the European Union, as well as respect all the rights and responsibilities it has assumed in the process. So we are fervent supporters of EU enlargement,” said Glavchev.
In his speech during the press conference after the meeting, Olaf Scholz stated that the six Western Balkan countries are a part of the European family and that their future lies in the European Union.
“More than 20 years ago, these countries were promised EU membership in Thessaloniki. It is high time that these words are followed by actions. To achieve this, Germany launched the Berlin Process ten years ago”, Scholz said. He said that, during today’s Summit, important progress was achieved that will make the lives of the citizens of the region easier.
“An example of this is the just-signed Common Regional Market Action Plan, with which the six states agreed to tighter cooperation on an economic area encompassing 17 million people. It will help, and this is very important for me personally, to better coordinate social and working standards and to make mobility between the countries easier”, Scholz said.
He added that another example is the Agreement on Access to Higher Education and Admission to Study in the Western Balkans.
He also said that a topic of the summit was regional conflicts and asserted that the Dialogue of normalization between Serbia and Kosovo was not proceeding satisfactorily.
Comments:
Berlin process survived 10 years, which is a very important message for all participants. The central point and message of the summit is early economic integration. “This is why the Berlin Process plays a key role. It has always been the driving force behind regional economic integration. Tthe Berlin Process became the promoter of the Western Balkan Six Common Regional Market. It is essential that this Common Regional Market functions smoothly. Because it allows the Western Balkan companies to trade, to innovate and to create good jobs. And because it brings the region closer to us and their economies, closer to our Single Market” Ursula von der Leyen said.
To what the president of the EC said, we can also add the agreements reached in the field of security and migration, fighting organized crime and irregular migration, smuggling of migrants and human trafficking.
Of particular importance is the observance of good neighborly relations in the Balkans, which is especially recorded in the conclusions. Unfortunately, some leaders in the Republic of North Macedonia forgot about this in their quest to win elections based on misconstrued patriotism and then keep their promises.
Hopefully, the general conclusions of this summit will help them to return to the path of normalization and find a way out of the situation that has arisen.
Foto: Pixabay
