BERLIN – Foreign Ministers of the Western Balkan countries met yesterday for a conference in Berlin, where they endorsed further steps within the Berlin Process, an initiative marking its 10th anniversary this year. The conference, hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Germany, is preceding a summit of regional leaders, which will be held on 14 October 2024.
German Foreign Ministry stated that the goal of the conference was to use the positive momentum since there is much more to be achieved within the Berlin Process. Further mobility agreements are being worked on, and the Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA) has still not been implemented.
According to the press release of the Ministry, the Agreement on Access to Higher Education and Admission to Higher Studies will be concluded at the Berlin Process Summit on 14 October. This agreement seeks to grant students the right to pursue studies at accredited higher education institutions and promotes student mobility.
The participants endorsed a declaration on Regional Foreign Direct Investment Screening Standards for the Western Balkans Six as well as Declaration on Research and Innovation Infrastructure Access and Collaboration.
“Finally, the participants of the Western Balkan Six underline their dedication to regional cooperation in an agreed Joint Declaration on Reaffirming Good Neighbourly Relations and Regional Cooperation on the Occasion of the 10th Anniversary of the Berlin Process, with a view to its endorsement at the Summit”, the press release reads.
Berlin Process was launched in 2014 to deepen regional integration and help the countries prepare for their EU membership. Among its achievements are the agreements on recognizing professional qualifications among the Western Balkan countries, the gradual abolition of roaming charges in the region and the setting up of the Regional Youth Cooperation Office (RYCO).
Foreign ministers from the six Western Balkan countries participated in the conference, as did the foreign ministers of Greece, Croatia, Austria, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and Hungary as the country holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Representatives of Italy, Poland, France and the European Commission were also present.
Baerbock: Accession of Western Balkans to the EU is a geopolitical necessity
In her opening remarks, Foreign Minister of Germany Annalena Baerbock said that it is understandable that many people in the Western Balkans are disappointed because the countries have not become EU members despite receiving the promise more than 20 years ago.
However, according to Baerbock, since the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, there has been a common understanding among EU member states that they do not want what Vladimir Putin considers “grey areas”.
“In our view, the accession of the Western Balkan states – just like the accession of Ukraine and Georgia – is a geopolitical necessity”, she said.
Baerbock added that economic cooperation in the Western Balkans should be improved and reminded that the European Union was also first started as an economic community.
“We therefore want to work to ensure that the course is set for implementation of the CEFTA, before the summit meeting of heads of state and government on 14 October. For almost two years, we as foreign ministers have been working hard to lay the foundation for this. Now, thanks to your commitment, thanks to all the ministers present here today and to their teams behind them, we are close to agreeing on a new action plan for the common regional market within the next two weeks”, Baerbock said.
She also said that the region should build a future based on the values of the European Union – on human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
“I want to be quite clear: It will become difficult for us to continue with the accession process if we see politicians pushing back against these values. If we see pushbacks against the rule of law. If we see attacks on members of NATO-led missions in the region. Or if we see high-ranking government officials maintaining close ties to Vladimir Putin”, the Foreign Minister said.
Meetings with officials of Kosovo and Serbia on the sidelines: CEFTA and normalisation of relations in focus
Minister Annalena Baerbock also held separate meetings with the officials of Kosovo and Serbia on the sidelines of the Conference.
President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani was also in Berlin yesterday, and she met with Baerbock. According to a statement by the German Foreign Ministry, they discussed the progress that is necessary in CEFTA and in the normalisation process between Kosovo and Serbia. Kosovo has so far rejected Germany’s offer to lift the ban on Serbian goods in exchange for full status in CEFTA.
KoSSev portal reports that Vjosa Osmani emphasised that the goal of the institution of Kosovo is to integrate Serbs, but that this was “obstructed by Serbia and its President”.
The same topics – CEFTA and normalisation of relations with Kosovo – were on the agenda of the one-on-one meeting between Baerbock and Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Đurić, German MFA stated.
According to the statement of the Government of Serbia, Đurić said that Belgrade was committed to dialogue, but that Pristina from the very beginning has shown extreme “unconstructiveness” and “unwillingness” to implement agreements, especially those related to the formation of the Association of the Serb-majority Municipalities.