Western Balkans regional leaders met in Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia, to discuss the Western Balkans Growth Plan approved by the EU Commission.
The meeting hosted by North Macedonia was attended by Prime Minister of North Macedonia Dimitar Kovacevski, President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic, Prime Minister of Albania Edi Rama, Prime Minister of Kosovo Albin Kurti, Prime Minister of Montenegro Milojko Spajic, Director General of the EU Commission’s Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations Gert Jan Koopman and US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O’Brien.
President of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Borjana Kristo, attended the meeting via videoconference.
Speaking to the press before the meeting, Prime Minister of North Macedonia Kovachevski said that this was an extremely important meeting.
“We intend to discuss the Western Balkans Growth Plan. This plan represents a truly concrete action by the EU in terms of increasing regional cooperation between states and at the same time including them in the common European market,” Kovachevski said.
Serbian President Vucic also noted that any assistance that can be provided to companies and businesses is important.
“I believe that our meeting today and the meeting we held last night are important for the progress and development of the entire region. I spoke with EU and US officials about the Growth Plan. We will continue our talks today,” Vucic said.
Albanian Prime Minister Rama said that within the scope of the said Plan, access to the European market is foreseen and this was previously only possible for EU members.
Rama said, “I must say that this is a very important meeting. Because we are here with EU representatives and the US administration to gather in one place our thoughts on a big step we need to take to get closer to the EU.”
On the other hand, Kosovo Prime Minister Kurti emphasized that his country will present its list of reforms at this meeting and that the reforms in public administration are at the center of this list.
Kurti said, “EU values must be transformed into reforms in our countries. The EU’s support must also be financial. The Growth Plan means 6 billion euros for our region. The amount of funding received depends on the good work we do and the successful performance we show.”
Montenegrin Prime Minister Spajic underlined that the Growth Plan is a strong signal for companies.
Spajic continued:
“Montenegro and others are happy to be part of this concept. The EU Growth Plan is a great opportunity for us. We can’t wait to get started and we heard that it is possible to have it from this year. I think this is a very important signal not only for the Western Balkan countries but also for businesses that want to invest in the Western Balkans.”
Koopman, Director General of Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations of the EU Commission, said that if this concept is implemented, it has the potential to double the economies of the countries in the region.
“It’s very encouraging to see how the region has embraced this concept, how it’s working hard on reforms that will help kick-start this growth, and how the region is already very actively engaging with each other. Today, the leaders will discuss the common regional market and the region’s gradual integration into our single market,” Koopman said.
US Deputy Secretary of State O’Brien welcomed the Growth Plan achievements.
“The EU’s Growth Plan is unlike any plan we’ve seen before. It doesn’t say that you have to make reforms and then you’ll be evaluated. What the plan says is that if you make certain reforms, your companies and your people will have access to the EU’s four fundamental freedoms very quickly,” O’Brien said.
