Debate in Brussels: The EU to deliver a message that it is ready to integrate the Western Balkans

 

The decision not to open membership talks with Albania and northern Macedonia has jeopardized the EU's credibility and the perception of the citizens of the Western Balkans.

He said this during the conference in the European Parliament "Green Wave in the Western Balkans", organized by the Greens.

MEPs and actors from the Western Balkans discussed the next steps in the Western Balkans' European integration, how progress can be made and how the EU's frustration in the region can be overcome, according to the EWB .

David Hudson, Senior EU Enlargement Expert at DG NEAR said the enlargement process was not distorted but did not meet expectations and took a very long time.

"16 years ago, when I was in Montenegro for the first time, I could not imagine that we would be in the situation we are in now. The enlargement process has changed radically. The way progress is measured has changed, although the goals of enlargement have remained the same, ” Hudson said, adding that the process is now more complex due to a large number of transitional measures.

He assessed that the European Commission is unenviable because the member states ultimately manage the enlargement process.

Montenegrin Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for European Integration Jovana Marovic, speaking about the conclusions of the Council of the European Union, stated that the newly formed Government does not expect anything from the EU because some results must be set first.

According to her, the Government of Montenegro has met the interim standards for closing Chapters 23 and 24 by the end of the year, which is an ambitious task but not impossible.

"We expect to receive the criteria for closing the negotiation chapters by the end of the year and we expect the EU to deliver a political message once it is ready to integrate the Western Balkans and Montenegro into the European Union. "We need a positive signal from the European Commission ," Marovic said.

She assessed that Montenegro has made the greatest progress on the road to the EU in the Western Balkans, but is still far from membership, which shows the state of the EU enlargement policy.

Ardita Abazi Imeri from the European Policy Institute in Skopje, said that in the case of Northern Macedonia, some member states are exporting bilateral disputes in the membership process. According to her, the shortcomings of the enlargement process are reflected in the fact that some additional criteria for membership have emerged, which are not related to European values.

“Maqedonia e Veriut nuk ka shkaktuar kurrë telashe dhe mendoj se ne gjithmonë i kemi respektuar të gjitha rregullat që nga viti 2001. Qëllimi ynë strategjik është të bëhemi anëtare e Bashkimit Evropian”, tha Abazi, duke shtuar se megjithëse BE-ja ka interesa gjeopolitike në rajon, disa shtete anëtare po e bllokojnë për interesa individuale.

“Është e vështirë të kërkohen reforma në vendet kandidate dhe është e vështirë të mbrohen vlerat evropiane në një situatë ku ka pasur ngërç në procesin e anëtarësimit për arsye që nuk kanë të bëjnë me anëtarësimin”, tha Abazi Imeri.

Deputetja e Gjelbër Tineke Strik kritikoi Komisionin Evropian dhe qëndrimin e tij në lidhje me situatën mes Maqedonisë së Veriut dhe Bullgarisë, sepse ajo beson se qëndrimi i KE-së nuk ishte neutral. Ajo theksoi se Komisioni Evropian duhet të jetë promotori i zgjerimit dhe se kriteret për Maqedoninë e Veriut cenojnë identitetin e vendit.

Ajo theksoi se precedenti në rastin e Maqedonisë së Veriut mund të inkurajojë Kroacinë që të promovojë interesat e popullit kroat në BiH, gjë që mund të rrezikojë të gjithë procesin e anëtarësimit të Bosnjë dhe Hercegovinës.

"The EC can support member states, but we should not only support a few member states. We support BiH's EU integration. "On the other hand, we are critical when we see how political leaders operate and divide society, while state institutions do not function . "