Western Balkans: EU Aware of Region’s Disillusionment with Enlargement

Ahead of the EU foreign ministers council meeting on Monday, a working document entitled “EU reinforced engagement in the Western Balkans” details the region’s disillusionment with the slow, stop-and-go European Union enlargement process. The diplomatic paper comes in the wake of a political storm over a series of phantom documents proposing highly controversial border amendments across the Western Balkans region followed by weak political responses by the EU.

“We need to acknowledge that despite the steadfast commitment to EU integration, and the unprecedented levels of EU financial and economic support – including to face the COVID-19 pandemic, the people in the region are experiencing a sense of deep disappointment in the enlargement process,” writes the foreign ministers’ document.

Furthermore, the EU paper calls upon Kosovo and Serbia to accelerate efforts for a comprehensive agreement on the normalization of their relations. Meanwhile, ahead of the council meeting, the EU’s chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, warned the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina to “stop using divisive nationalist rhetoric and instead focus on rapid progress on reforms.”

Source: Euractiv.com