What the Russian invasion of Ukraine teaches us all is the “need to line up behind International Law, against revisionism, against any kind of attempt to change borders by force, against war”, underlined the Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Dendias in the intervention on a panel at the “Dubrovnik Forum” in Croatia.
As he noted, Dubrovnik is the right place to talk about it, as besides “a very beautiful city architecturally and a perfect example of a global city on the Adriatic, a protected monument by UNESCO, it is also a success story”.
“A city destroyed by war and rebuilt in a perfect way. If you walk around Dubrovnik today, you would never imagine that a few years ago there was a war raging around here,” he said.
Mr. Dendias emphasized the need to address the challenges of the Western Balkans.
For example, as he mentioned, we would all like Bosnia-Herzegovina to be a success story, but we all know that it is potentially a powder keg, and he underlined the need for everyone to contribute as much as they can to the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue.
Referring to the EU enlargement process in the Western Balkans, he recalled that Greece was the first country in the region to join the EU.
“We feel that we have fulfilled our obligation regarding the Eastern Balkans: Romania, Bulgaria. But the Western Balkans also need the help of Greece, Croatia and other members to fulfill their European future,” he underlined.
The Foreign Minister emphasized that the negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia have been delayed for a long time and the fact that we have new candidacies, such as Ukraine “should not allow us to forget how important it is for Albania and North Macedonia to start this process “.
“We need to show that the EU is able to fulfill its promises. And there are other promises that need to be fulfilled, such as the EU’s visa liberalization for Kosovo, which we have not fulfilled,” he said.
“The EU must be much more present in the Western Balkans,” he underlined. “We need to look at creating more connectivity between us in all kinds of ways.”
“If you currently start from Trieste and drive along the Adriatic, you cannot easily end up in Mani, which is the southern end of mainland Greece. We should have a highway that connects everyone,” he said.
He also stressed the need for energy connectivity, especially after the Russian invasion. He reminded that the Prime Minister yesterday inaugurated the IGB, the interconnection pipeline with Bulgaria and the need for there to be even more projects that will put us all in a common network.
“One thing is clear: through connectivity and cooperation we can build a bright future for our region,” he concluded.
Source: Capital
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