The European Commission has presented to the European Parliament the progress reports for the countries in the enlargement process, which include the countries of the Western Balkans and Turkey.
Johannes Hahn, EU Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, once again recommended the opening of membership negotiations for North Macedonia and Albania.
"We talked about the Western Balkans expansion strategy. This year's report presents the progress made by the countries of the Western Balkans. Many challenges remain. We will present the same recommendation for Albania and North Macedonia. Law enforcement and stability remain some of the points that these countries must implement," said Hahn, TopChannel reports.
In reading the progress report, Commissioner Hahn said that "Albania is making reforms, important transformation in the field of justice".
"This is an example for other countries as well. Both countries have made progress. On this basis, the commission recommends the opening of negotiations for both countries. They have responded to the strategy for the Balkans, I am pleased to see how Albania has followed the reform in justice, especially in the judicial system, unprecedented reassessment of prosecutors and judges. Also regarding how North Macedonia resolved the name issue. The Commission recommends that the Council open negotiations now with Albania and North Macedonia", said Hahn.
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Hahn recommends the model of North Macedonia to countries with problems in the Balkans
After reading the report, Hahn asked that Chinese investments in the Balkans be taken into account.
"The third challenge for these countries is the economy. Countries should implement reforms thanks to the improvement of the economy. The EU is our main partner, but China's investments should also be taken into consideration," he said.
After receiving the recommendation for the opening of negotiations from the European Commission, it is the member countries that will decide on this proposal. The final decision belongs to the Council of Foreign Ministers of the EU countries, which will meet in June.
The Netherlands and Germany will receive the approval of the Parliament to decide in favor of this decision, while France and Belgium are skeptical to continue with the enlargement of the EU at this time.
Regarding Serbia and Montenegro, Hahn said that these two countries should increase their efforts regarding the opening of negotiations for EU membership.
"Serbia and Montenegro must increase their efforts in their work. This is the most important and the condition for moving forward on the path of integration. As for the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, these two countries should continue it. Kosovo should remove tariffs for Serbia and Bosnia. Tariffs for Serbia and Bosnia should be removed. Kosovo should be based on the SAA agreement", said the EU Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations. Johannes Hahn.
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Hahn: Kosovo should remove taxes from Serbia and Bosnia
Meanwhile, a few minutes after the European Commission recommended the opening of negotiations between Albania and the EU, Prime Minister Edi Rama responded.
With a status on his Twitter page, Rama writes that with this recommendation, it is confirmed that "Albania has successfully completed its homework in this process".
