Relations between Pristina and Belgrade and the parliamentary and presidential elections in North Macedonia in May were the main topics at the meeting of Western Balkan leaders in Skopje, where the details of the European Union’s (EU) Growth Plan for the region were discussed. Both topics are among the prerequisites for the respective countries to have access to the initial fund of 6 billion euros, which was planned and presented by Brussels at the end of last year as the region’s growth plan for the Western Balkans.
Although they agreed to have dinner together on Sunday evening and to take a photo together after today’s meeting, the heads of state and government declined to hold a joint press conference. In addition to the Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Dimitar Kovacevski, who hosted the meeting, the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, of Albania, Edi Rama, the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, of Montenegro, Milojko Spaic, and the Acting Minister of Finance and Treasury in the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Srdjan Amidzić, were also present. Gert Jan Kopman, Director General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations at the European Commission (EU), represented Brussels, while James O’Brien, the US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, came from the USA.
O’Brien: Skopje must choose the European path
The elections in North Macedonia will determine the dynamics of the country’s EU integration, O’Brien said at the joint press conference with Macedonian Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski. According to him, in the coming months the citizens of North Macedonia will have to choose between the vision of moving towards Europe and a completely different path.
“The choice is up to them,” he said, adding that one political option has already pushed the integration process forward, alluding to the current government, while the other, in his opinion, is not showing how it will integrate the country into the EU.
“One side has proposed a way forward and has been criticized for liking or disliking that way. Another party promises to find a different way forward and I think it’s right that citizens ask that party to explain its vision. And then you can choose between a vision that you know and something that is a promise,” O’Brien said. He expressed his conviction that North Macedonia and the United States will continue to work together on the country’s development towards Europe.
When asked about the existence of a “non-paper” from the Albanian political parties committing not to form a coalition with a party that does not implement the constitutional amendments in the next six months after the elections, O’Brien said he knew nothing about it.
Meanwhile, Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti has denied rumors of his interference in the neighboring country’s political scene and denied that there are no plans for the establishment of Vetevendosje in North Macedonia. Kurti explained that the calculation of the coalitions for the elections in North Macedonia would be carried out by the political parties and the citizens here.
“The Vetëvendosje movement is not officially registered in North Macedonia. We have activists, we also have officials from our political unit in Kosovo who come from North Macedonia, we are not officially registered here, so they are not participating as a movement here. I would like to have the highest possible participation in the elections, because that contributes to democracy. We know that the last population census, including emigrants, put the percentage of Albanians in North Macedonia at 29 percent, if I’m not mistaken. It is up to them who the candidate will be and who he or she will be,” Kurti said at a meeting with journalists in Skopje.
North Macedonia failed to comply with the French proposal until November, a document that overrode Bulgaria’s veto after Skopje agreed to include ethnic Bulgarians in the country’s constitution. The unwavering resistance of VMRO-DPMNE in opposition made it impossible to achieve two-thirds of the votes in parliament, so much so that it was necessary to pass the constitutional amendments, which remain a prerequisite for opening the first chapters of the process of accession negotiations with the EU. O’Brien’s messages come on the eve of the spring elections for which the process has begun.
The EU plan for the growth of the Western Balkans
The Western Balkans Growth Plan, which brought together the region’s heads of state and government in Skopje, was presented by Brussels on November 8, 2023, along with reports on the progress of the candidate countries. It covers the period 2024-2027 and provides six billion euros for the six countries of the Western Balkans: two as non-repayable funds and four billion as soft loans. The objectives of the plan include the creation of a single regional market and access to the EU market, the doubling of the economies and the reduction of the socio-economic gap between the countries of the region and the members of the Union.
In order to receive the money provided in the plan, the countries in the region must fulfill certain conditions. Concrete socio-economic reforms are required from the region, but also fundamental reforms such as the rule of law, democracy, respect for basic human rights and fundamental freedoms. Macro-financial stability, sound management of public finances, transparency and control of budgets, etc. are prerequisites.
There is also a special prerequisite for Serbia and Kosovo: to participate constructively in the dialogue for the normalization of mutual relations in order to implement the commitments from the agreements and annexes reached so far.
“We support the roadmap that was agreed in this country last March in Ohrid, and we believe that the two countries should develop a dialog process to follow this roadmap,” O’Brien commented on the Pristina-Belgrade reports.
O’Brian said that the Balkan countries should not veto each other and thus hinder the European integration of the region. “How do we know this will work when so many other initiatives have failed because of divisions in the region? In this program, no one can veto the other. Each country is responsible for its own reforms. Now, countries that adopt this initiative will benefit quickly and not wait for independent bilateral disputes to be resolved. “These are incredible successes,” said US diplomat O’Brien about the growth plan.
Meanwhile, Brussels representative Kopman emphasized the need for cooperation between the countries in the region. “That is why we have included a condition in this part of the growth plan that says you must not block your neighbors. We want you to come with us. You can only block yourself. If you don’t block your neighbors, we’ll accept that.” But if you block them, access to the single market will not be possible because the joint costs of non-cooperation will be very high,” Kopman said.
Prime Minister Dimitar Kovacevski described the growth plan as serious political confirmation that the EU has a concrete plan for the efficient integration of the Western Balkans.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, has proposed a list of reforms and said that he would also present a list of concrete projects in the coming days. According to Kurti, the most important reforms that the country will focus on are the reforms of public administration and public financial management. In terms of projects, Kurti mentioned digitalization, investment in the private sector and the expansion of infrastructure.
For the Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, this is a maturity test that the countries in the region must pass.
“So excuse my enthusiasm and optimism. I’m not a fool. I’m telling you, it’s a very good reason to be optimistic today, after we had dinner last night and suddenly realized that we can have a civilized conversation and think about the economy and people without having a story between two meals, said Rama.
Also with regard to the common regional market, Serbian President Vucic showed that Serbia is completely open to all ideas and is ready to implement them.
He emphasized that Serbia is expected to form a new government by March 15 and could then receive the first money from the growth plan. /The Geopost/