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Balkan summit: Scholz, von der Leyen talk up EU expansion

October 15, 2024

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed optimism over adding Balkan states to the bloc at the 10th annual Berlin Process summit.

https://p.dw.com/p/4ln1M
German chancellor Olaf Scholz welcomes European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to the 'Berlin Process' summit about integration with and within the western Balkans in Berlin
Ursula von der Leyen and Olaf Scholz met at the Berlin Process where the subject of EU expansion to include Balkan states was on the agendaImage: Ebrahim Noroozi/AP/picture alliance

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday said he hoped Western Balkan states could inch closer to becoming members of the European Union as he hosted leaders from the region in Berlin.

"I hope it won't take another 10 years before all six states finally become EU members," Scholz said at the summit known as the Berlin Process.

The six nations Scholz was referring to were Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Albania.

"The European Union is only complete with the Western Balkans as part of it," Scholz said.

The German chancellor made the comments alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at a news conference on the sidelines of the Berlin Process summit, which saw leaders sign a plan of action on a common market in the region. A new mobility agreement on access to higher education was also on the table in the German capital.

The Berlin Process has been held annually since 2014, with Scholz adding: "We have managed to create something that I would call the spirit of Berlin."

Berlin Process Summit 2024
Political leaders were meeting in Berlin to help foster relations between six western Balkan nations: Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Bosnia and HerzegovinaImage: Halil Sagirkaya/Anadolu/picture alliance

Russian influence in the Balkans still a concern

Von der Leyen also described the summit as a success, saying that EU enlargement is once again a priority for the 27-member bloc.

The EU has not admitted a new member since Croatia joined in 2013. Von der Leyen admitted that there had been a long period in which "enlargement... was excluded as a possibility."

"This has completely changed in the last years," she added.

The EU chief also warned against rising Russian influence in the West Balkans.

"Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine has brought clarity — you have to choose to be on the right side of history and on the side of international law," she said.

The Berlin Process for the Western Balkans explained

Free trade hopes

The meeting in Berlin comes days after German mediation helped to resolve a long dispute over free trade in the region, something Scholz said was "nothing less than a breakthrough for regional cooperation."

However, Scholz said that past conflicts continue to hurt cooperation, with relations between Serbia and Kosovo a particular source of difficulty.

"I insist that both parties fully implement the commitments they have made," Scholz said.

jsi/zc (dpa, AFP)