TIRANA – The European Union decided to open accession negotiations with Albania and Northern Macedonia, despite the crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic, European Commissioner Johannes Hahn has said stating that the Western Balkans belongs to Europe and that the efforts of the countries in that region will be recognized.
Commissioner Hahn told the Croatian Express on Monday that the integration of the Western Balkans into the EU is a process based on merit and that as such it is in the true interest of the EU.
“It’s about ‘exporting stability instead of importing instability,'” Hahn, a former commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and enlargement negotiations, pointed out. He urged “friends from the Balkans” to continue with the reforms on the European path and that these efforts will be recognized.
He added that by reprogramming financial resources and additional measures, such as lifting the ban on the export of medical devices, the EU has clearly shown that the Western Balkans belongs to the EU.
Speaking about the pandemic of the novel coronavirus, Hahn said that it was a pandemic of unprecedented proportions, but that it must not serve as an excuse for governments to abuse the situation and impose disproportionate measures.
General Affairs Council of the EU (Ministers of EU Affairs) gave a green light to opening of EU accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia on March 24 this year which as Enlargement Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi said is a loud and clear message to Western Balkans that its future is in EU. /argumentum.al
