The Foreign Minister of Italy, Antonio Tajani, on Tuesday gave strong support to the candidacy of the countries of the Western Balkans for membership in the European Union. Tajani has said that if these countries do not join the EU, then they can turn to Russia or China, reports the "AP" agency.
Speaking during his visit to North Macedonia, Tajani said that the bloc "must extend its hand to those people who want to be with us Europeans".
"If we don't do this, then there will be someone who wants to replace us, I mean Russia, China or other parts of the world, I mean Turkey", said Tajani.
He spoke during a media conference in Skopje with his counterpart Timco Mutsunski.
Tajani said that Italy "is working and will work for North Macedonia to become a member of the EU as soon as possible".
North Macedonia and neighboring Albania have been candidates to join the EU since 2005. They opened negotiations with the bloc in 2022, in a process expected to take several years.
Other Western Balkan states aiming for EU membership are Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Kosovo.
