European Council President Charles Michel said the EU and candidate countries must implement reforms so new members can join by the end of the decade. EU Leaders will discuss the issue at an upcoming summit.
He made the remarks at the international strategic forum at the Slovenian lakeside resort of Bled, a meeting attended by Western Balkan leaders.
EU officials fear that Russia could seek to destabilize the Balkans, which experienced a bloody war in the 1990s, and thus divert world attention from its aggression in Ukraine.
Russia’s Balkan ally Serbia has refused to join EU sanctions against Moscow, although Belgrade says it respects Ukrainian territorial integrity.
The six Western Balkan states — Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia — are at different stages in the process of joining the bloc.
Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama welcomed Michel’s announcement, calling for words to “materialize in… real steps forward.”
Meanwhile, Serbia’s Prime Minister Ana Brnabic warned that waiting for a decade without negotiations since obtaining candidate status had fuelled euroscepticism in her country.
The original article contains 527 words, the summary contains 138 words. Saved 74%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
He made the remarks at the international strategic forum at the Slovenian lakeside resort of Bled, a meeting attended by Western Balkan leaders.
EU officials fear that Russia could seek to destabilize the Balkans, which experienced a bloody war in the 1990s, and thus divert world attention from its aggression in Ukraine.
Russia’s Balkan ally Serbia has refused to join EU sanctions against Moscow, although Belgrade says it respects Ukrainian territorial integrity.
The six Western Balkan states — Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia — are at different stages in the process of joining the bloc.
Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama welcomed Michel’s announcement, calling for words to “materialize in… real steps forward.”
Meanwhile, Serbia’s Prime Minister Ana Brnabic warned that waiting for a decade without negotiations since obtaining candidate status had fuelled euroscepticism in her country.
The original article contains 527 words, the summary contains 138 words. Saved 74%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!