"Croatia, a model for the Balkans' integration into the EU" - German minister emphasizes Zagreb's key role in membership negotiations
The EU accession process for the Western Balkan countries has encountered obstacles over the years. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul is seeking to boost the process, highlighting Croatia's key role in advancing the talks.
The EU accession process for Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo is not progressing. German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul wants to boost the bloc's enlargement process with these countries. He believes that Croatia plays a key role in this regard. "We now need to give a new impetus to enlargement for Ukraine, Moldova and the Western Balkan countries," the CDU politician said during a meeting with his counterpart Gordan Grlic Radman in the Croatian capital, Zagreb. "I hope that Croatia will play an active and decisive role as a companion," he added.
Among the Western Balkan countries, Montenegro is considered the closest to EU membership, but no date has yet been set for its accession. The bloc has been holding negotiations with Montenegro and Serbia since 2012 and 2014. Negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia began in 2022. Bosnia and Herzegovina has candidate status for accession, but has not yet started talks. Kosovo, meanwhile, is a potential candidate for accession.
EU membership is not just a technical process, but also a geopolitical issue, Wadephul said. "We must not abandon our neighbors to autocrats who seek to exert their influence through disinformation and corruption," he warned, without mentioning countries like Russia and China. Alongside the enlargement process, the EU must reform from within to be able to face geopolitical challenges as a capable and democratically consolidated bloc.
Croatia is indispensable to the enlargement process, Wadephul said. "You know the difficulties of the accession process from your own experience. This makes you a bridge between the Western Balkans and the Union." Croatia was the last country to join the European Union, in mid-2013, and is also a member of NATO.
Croatian Foreign Minister Radman stated that his country was actively participating in the EU negotiation process with the Balkan countries. "We do not want to see third-party influence on these countries. The Western Balkans are part of Europe; they belong geopolitically and geostrategically to the EU," he stressed.
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