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The EU gave another disappointment to the countries of the Western Balkans. As it paved the way for Ukraine to join, it kept in place Albania and Northern Macedonia blocked by Bulgaria.
Contrary to what they announced a few days ago, the political leaders of Albania, Northern Macedonia and Serbia did not cancel their participation in the summit between the European Union and the countries of the Western Balkans, which took place in Brussels on June 23rd.
“We talked at length with the leaders of Serbia and Northern Macedonia about the next summit. It seems that at the end of it we will hear another answer: ‘No, we are sorry!’ Bulgaria taking the whole Union hostage is not a spectacle to be seen! What to do there ?! ”
With this status on Twitter, Albanian Prime Minister Rama may have tried to prepare Albanians for another “NO” from the European Union, regarding the enlargement process and its EU membership. A day later, he confirmed his attendance at the summit, linking the change of course to the idea that French President Macron tossed out on May 9 this year, when he spoke of a “European political community”, a community that would serve as a lobby. For countries waiting in line to join the EU “big chamber”. At a joint press conference, Prime Minister Rama, Serbian President Vucic and Macedonian Prime Minister Kovacevski said in unison that they accepted the French offer.
The Western Balkans are rebelling against the EU
After more than five hours of talks between the top leaders of the European Union, with the leaders of the Western Balkans, the planned press conference of the President of the EU Council, Charles Michel with the French President, Emmanuel Macron and the President of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen was officially canceled for time reasons.
Edi Rama, Dimitar Kovacevski and Aleksandar Vucic
But as this conference was canceled, another conference got the attention of many media during this summit. Rama, Vuçi dhe and Kovacevski, as rarely before, addressed the Union and its leaders in harsh and derogatory tones, including jokes exchanged between them, which often turned the significance of the event into a “happy Balkan bargain”. ”.
The double veto by Bulgaria – the country in which the government fell the night before the summit – was the key word used in Kovachevski and Rama’s speeches. The first considered it as a state holding hostage the advance of Northern Macedonia. “We showed the EU that we have our red lines when it comes to Bulgaria and assure my citizens that I will defend their interests to the end, defending our language and identity,” Kovacevski said, referring to the historical conflicts and tangles of carried from the past with Bulgaria.
Prime Minister Rama playing the conductor in the “happy Balkan bazaar”
Rama had another approach to the Union, saying he felt sorry for the EU. Unlike his Macedonian counterpart, Rama did not mention the citizens of his country but started it with irony: “Let me express my deep regret for the European Union. “I feel sorry for them and I hope we can help them.” His harsh rhetoric towards the outcome of this summit was also commented by his Serbian counterpart Vucic, who, smiling, commented on Rama’s behavior “as frustrated”.
Open Balkan
“Open Balkan”, the Balkan regional initiative, which currently consists only of Albania, Serbia and Northern Macedonia, took on great importance throughout the press conference.
“I asked for full and unequivocal support for the Open Balkans, because even for this they are divided, as if they will live in the Balkans and are divided in relation to the Balkans for what we do in our space” – Rama continued with his rhetoric.
While Vucic was quick to assure that no one had been consulted about the initiative, including Putin, implying the accusations made in public that this is a Russian initiative.
The Serbian president even described the filling of the hall full of journalists as a success of this initiative. “When we started this process, only two or three journalists were interested in it. “Look now, the hall is full,” Vucic said proudly. And in fact the interest was high, but only three journalists in total, from Albania, Northern Macedonia and Serbia, pre-selected, had the right to ask questions. In the final moments of the conference, a French journalist was able to provide a question, to which he jokingly said he could not wait for the answer, biting the conference protracted by speeches.
Debates over the “Open Balkans” continue to be fierce. In an exclusive interview with Deutsche Welle just a day before the summit, Manuel Sarrazin, the German Federal Government’s Special Envoy for BP, was skeptical about the initiative and stressed that it should be comprehensive, referring to the non-partition of Kosovo. Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina./DW
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