German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited Serbia on Monday as part of her tour of the Balkans to support the enlargement of the European Union (EU).
During her visit, Merkel urged the EU to “win the battle of influence” as Russia and China look to expand their leverage in the region. “It’s in the European Union’s strategic interests to integrate the Balkan state into the bloc,” she said. Merkel added: “We Europeans, who are already members of the European Union, should always keep in mind that there is an absolute geostrategic interest for us to accept these countries into the European Union, and we see when you said there are steps backwards, that there is also influence from many other regions of the world.”
Regarding integration into the bloc, Merkel urged Serbia to take steps towards the rule of law, democracy, the plurality of society, and a negotiated settlement with Kosovo.
Apart from Belgrade, Merkel travelled to Albania on Tuesday and urged the leaders of six Western Balkan nations to strengthen regional cooperation to achieve EU membership. “The more cooperation you have, the stronger the Berlin Process will be,” she said. Berlin Process is an initiative started by Merkel in 2014 to bolster regional cooperation among Western Balkan countries.
At a news conference in Albania, Merkel said, “From the geostrategic viewpoint, the EU, or concretely Germany, has its own interest in the membership of the (western Balkan) countries into the EU.” “The EU must keep its word and not always come up with new conditions again and again because it doesn’t have any interest—perhaps due to domestic reasons in some countries—to push forward the process of accession. That causes disappointment, and I can understand that disappointment. We should trust each other,” she noted.
Serbia, Bosnia, North Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, and Kosovo have sought EU membership for decades. However, the bloc has been stalling the integration of the Western Balkan nations, citing incompatibility with the bloc’s rule of law and European values. This decision and the EU’s diplomatic crisis have pushed these countries to seek an alliance with other nations, including Russia and China.
German Chancellor Merkel Pushes For Integration of Balkan States in EU
In her last tour, German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited Serbia and Albania to support the European Union’s enlargement and integration of Western Balkan nations into the bloc.
September 15, 2021
SOURCE: NAPA VALLEY REGISTER