The leaders of the “27” of the EU and the Western Balkans in Brussels: “The debate is likely to be intense”

EU leaders will meet in Brussels today and the Western Balkans at a Summit that will reiterate the importance of the region for the EU, as their accession process is delayed. “We need to revitalize the enlargement process and promote the integration of our partners in the Western Balkans,” European Council President Charles Michel said in a letter of invitation to European leaders.

According to a img EU, the discussion is likely to be intense. Suffice it to note that leaders of Serbia, Northern Macedonia, Albania threaten to boycott meeting to protest slow pace of accession processfinally confirming their involvement almost at the last minute.

According to the draft conclusions of the European Council, EU leaders are expected to express the “full and unequivocal commitment of the EU to the accession of the Western Balkans” and to call for the acceleration of the accession process. The European Council is also expected to call on the Commission, the High Representative and the Council to further promote the gradual integration between the EU and the region, already during the enlargement process itself, in a reversible and meritocratic way.

At the same time Northern Macedonia and Albania are waiting for the “green light” from the EU to start accession negotiations. The process continues to be blocked by Bulgaria, which has sunk into a new political crisis, following the vote of confidence the government lost in yesterday’s vote in Parliament. Therefore, it is considered almost unlikely that the issue will be resolved today, according to diplomatic imgs, but efforts are being made to find a solution by the end of the French Presidency (end of June), according to a response from the Athens News Agency.

The EU SummitWestern Balkans starts at 10.30 am (Greek time zone).

The European Council will follow at 4 p.m. (Greek time) with key issues the approval of candidate status for membership in Ukraine and Moldova, food security, the situation in Ukraine, Turkey. On the second day of the Summit, 24 June, the macroeconomic situation in the EU and the implications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine will be discussed in the presence of the President of the European Central Bank, Christine Lagarde.