Deep co-operation in Balkans in line with Berlin Process called for Kosovo involvement

Albanian Prime Minister Rama, Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić held a video meeting on Friday (29.10), in terms of the Devi-19 pandemic to resume the deepening initiative of regional co-operation launched last year. In a joint official statement, they stress that <x0 minusiation for deepening regional co-operation is fully in line with the Berlin Process and a good basis for the Sofia Summit”. The statement notes that the <x2 operations of this initiative were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, elections in northern Macedonia and in Serbia”. The “Three leaders agreed that the epidemic crisis has stressed the need for further intensifying bilateral co-operation and regional economic integration” is highlighted in the joint statement.

Initiative in Full Harmony With the Berlin Process

The joint statement emphasises that at the online meeting, President Vučić and the prime ministers, Rama and Zaev, expressed that “nisma for deepening regional co-operation is in full compliance with the Berlin Process and represents a good basis for preparing the countries of the Western Balkans for the upcoming summit for the Western Balkans, to be held in Sofia in November, as Bulgaria and North Macedonia are co-chairers of the Berlin Process this year. ”

Turnout of 6 Important BP Countries

The decision of the three countries to resume activities towards deepening regional co-operation seems insufficient when it comes to an initiative in line with the Berlin Process, the diplomatic initiative of Chancellor Merkel, launched in the summer of 2014 in Berlin and continuing with 5 EU summits for the Western Balkans in Vienna, Paris, Trieste, London and Poznan to give new impulses to the region's EU integration process. The leaders of Albania, Serbia and Northern Macedonia agreed that it is very important that the initiative for deepening regional co-operation participate in the six countries of the Western Balkans. The three leaders officially invited Kosovo to join the initiative for deepening regional co-operation”, the joint statement suggested.

The newly made invitation is following the framework set at the Washington meeting between Kosovo Prime Minister Abdullah Hoti and Serbia's president, Vucic, the agreement signed on normalising economic relations Serbia-Kosovo, in September this year, where Hoti pledged to join this initiative. A year ago, Prime Minister Rama singled out Kosovo's participation “suicide in the economic and political plan”.

President Vučić and prime ministers Rama and Zaev also agreed to establish a permanent working group, with officials from each of the countries accelerating the implementation of activities agreed on under the deepening regional co-operation initiative.

Identification of joint regional projects

According to them, the strengthened regional co-operation initiative can be used to identify joint projects in infrastructure and the region's development agenda in line with the EU Economic and Investment Package for the Western Balkans. They agreed to deepen co-operation even in terms of public health policies in the context of the war against Coddy-19. Balkan leaders hope that soon the government of Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina will join the initiative to boost freedoms, trade and bring better living standards to all peoples of the region, the joint statement concludes.

In the joint statement of the three leaders for the first time, the term Balkan Mini Schengen has not been used, as the initiative launched by Serbian President Vučić, Albanian Prime Minister Rama and Macedonian Zaev was called last year.

Three regional summits were held with this term, the last in Tirana in December last year, when the Balkan Mini Schengen initiative was called” Berlin Plus” and was supported by the European Commission, the American State Department, the World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the European Investment Bank.