The granting to kyiv of the status of candidate for accession to the European Union annoys the countries of the Western Balkans.
Correspondent in Brussels
Thursday 23 June will go down as a key date in the history of the EU with the promises made to Ukraine and Moldova and as a moment of impotence for the Twenty-Seven in the face of their neighbors in the Western Balkans. Meeting at a summit in Brussels, the Europeans granted Ukraine and Moldova the official status of candidate for the EU on Thursday evening. These two countries – one at war with Russia, the other partly amputated and threatened by it – thus win four months after the start of the war the precious sesame which can make them hope to join the Union. A European perspective is also offered to Georgia, but without formal candidate status.
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The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, haileda historic moment». «There could be no better sign of hope for the citizens of Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia in these troubled timessaid Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. This is “a very strong signal vis-à-vis Russiacommented Emmanuel Macron. “It’s political, I fully recognize it“, also admitted the president. In a video message, President Zelensky did not say anything else:“This is the greatest step towards the strengthening of Europe that can be taken now, in our time, and precisely in the context of the war in Russia, which is testing our ability to preserve freedom and unity“. Ukraine thus obtains a status with the EU which had been refused to it at NATO a few months earlier.
The day ended better than it started. At the start of the afternoon, the leaders of the Western Balkan countries – long-time candidates for entry into the EU – emerged very angry from their meeting with the Twenty-Seven. Moreover, it is with a tight smile that everyone posed for the traditional family photo of this umpteenth EU-Balkans summit. “Nice place, nice people, nice words, nice pictures. Imagine how much nicer it could be if the beautiful promises were followed by actionAlbanian Prime Minister Edi Rama quipped on Twitter in a comment to the photo.
Many frustrations
In order to avoid awkward questions, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, has decided to cancel the press conference dedicated to the meeting and which Ursula von der Leyen and Emmanuel Macron were to join, under the French presidency. of the Union (PFUE). Officially for reasons of delay. A choice considered by many as a lack of respect vis-à-vis these countries.
The more the EU fails to give a unified and clear sign to the Western Balkans, the more other malicious actors will use this space and vacuum.
Vjosa Osmani, president of Kosovo
The North Macedonian, Albanian and Serbian leaders – who had once threatened to boycott the summit before backtracking – held their conference. And, they didn’t mince words. “It’s a shame that a NATO country, Bulgaria, kidnaps two other NATO countries, namely Albania and North Macedonia, in the midst of a hot war and with 26 other countries standing still in a frightening show of helplessness“, tackled Edi Rama, claiming not to be”frustrated“but above all”sorryfor the EU.
This Western Balkan summit wanted by Emmanuel Macron and announced in December – well before the start of the war in Ukraine – was to make it possible to officially launch the accession negotiations for North Macedonia and Albania and also to revitalize the processes in lesson for the other countries in the region – Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia – some of whom are getting tired of waiting in the Union’s waiting room for twenty years. Their leaders, however, emerged from the meeting empty-handed. Nothing concrete except this reaffirmation of the European perspective. And nothing especially for North Macedonia and Albania. Not only was Bulgaria, which has been blockading Skopje for more than a year against a backdrop of historical and cultural disputes, very difficult to convince, but just when the French thought their proposal had a chance of being accepted, the government of this country has been overthrown. It was Wednesday, the day before the summit. As North Macedonia is blocked, Albania also finds itself held hostage since these two countries are supposed to move forward together in membership. Despite everything, Emmanuel Macron continues to believe in it. “The next few hours and days will be important to see if we find an agreement between North Macedonia and Bulgaria“, he estimated while the PFUE ends in less than a week. A vote scheduled for Friday in the Bulgarian Parliament could perhaps unblock the case.
A forced acceleration
Tensions were high enough during the EU-Balkans summit for the Europeans to devote four long hours to the subject in the afternoon. In the conclusions of the meeting, is mentioned in black and white the status of candidate that “the European Council is ready to grantto Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Commission’s mission is to make “without delay” a report on the subject.
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By giving pledges to Ukraine and Moldova, the Europeans have little choice but to speed up the process for the Western Balkans.”The more the EU fails to give a unified and clear sign to the Western Balkans, the more other malicious actors will use this space and vacuum.summed up the President of Kosovo, Vjosa Osmani. Emmanuel Macron, however, called on countries wishing to join the EU to be cautious, judging that not all of them might be able to join the EU in the end and that the process would be long anyway. “That will take time. And we are witnessing a phenomenon of enlargement fatigue“, he underlined during the press conference. Before defending again this new cenacle that he proposes to create on the continent, the European political community. “We need to think about how to stabilize our neighborhood. And let’s be honest, maybe we won’t always live in the same house, but we will live on the same street“. In the conclusions of the meeting, it is stated that “this framework will not replace existing EU policies and instruments, including enlargement, and will fully respect the decision-making autonomy of the European Union“. It is added that “the European Council will come back to this issue».