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By:
Augustin Palokaj
- September 18, 2026 16:14
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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will travel to the countries of the Western Balkans region from September 30 to October 2, but during this tour she will avoid Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
She is also expected to visit Kosovo, as well as Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia. She will not go to Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Officially, the reason for avoiding visits to Belgrade and Sarajevo is the election campaign in those two countries. However, EU sources say that the glorification of the criminal Ratko Mladic has also influenced this decision.
During this trip, the President of the European Commission, von der Leyen, is expected to reiterate the European Commission's support for the enlargement process and for the progress of the countries of the region on their European path. Montenegro has advanced the most on this path, followed by Albania, while other countries are almost blocked. Kosovo applied for EU membership four years ago, but that application has not been considered. In the meantime, EU punitive measures have been lifted from Kosovo, and Ursula von der Leyen played an important role in their removal.
Von der Leyen visits the Western Balkans region every autumn on the eve of the release of Progress Reports for the countries involved in the enlargement process. This year, these reports will be adopted and published by the end of October.