At the invitation of the head of diplomacy of the European Union, Josep Borrell, on September 20 the leaders of the Western Balkan countries will meet in New York.
This meeting was confirmed for Radio Free Europe by sources within the EU in Brussels, who said that "it has already become a tradition that in the week of September when the annual session of the UN General Assembly takes place in New York, the representative high for Foreign Policy and Security, to gather the leaders of the countries of the Western Balkans in such a meeting".
These sources have said that they do not know which country will be represented at which level, but they are confident that all countries will participate. During the week of meetings at the UN General Assembly in New York, Kosovo will be represented by the president, Vjosa Osmani.
The sources have also said that there will be a discussion about the global situation, which has changed dramatically after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but also about the current situation in the Western Balkans region.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, during the speech in the European Parliament. September 14, 2022. It is the war in Ukraine that has been mentioned several times as one of the additional reasons that the remaining problems in this region must be resolved as soon as possible, in order to prevent the escalation of tensions.
There are a number of developments expected to take place in the coming weeks and months in the EU's relations with the Western Balkans, including a summit expected to take place in early October in Prague. There, for the first time, the creation of a European Political Community will be discussed, a format where the EU countries and other European countries that are not formal members of the bloc would be.
also
Borrell: The leaders of the region take bold decisions to move towards integration
About the Western Balkans and the need to continue the cooperation between the United States of America and the European Union, it is expected to be discussed in a trans-Atlantic meeting at the level of foreign ministers, which meeting will be organized by the American Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken. Borrell will also participate in this meeting.
The EU and the US have pledged to cooperate in the future in joint efforts to maintain the stability of the Western Balkans region and to solve the remaining problems./REL/
-
Borrell: The leaders of the region must take bold decisions to move towards integration
-
On Wednesday, Borrelli hosts the leaders of the Western Balkans for a working lunch
-
Von der Leyen invites the leaders of the Western Balkans to a meeting
-
Borrell hosts the foreign ministers of the Western Balkans on Monday