The Berlin Process: Maas today hosts Western Balkan countries' foreign ministers' conference

This was made known Monday in Berlin, Germany's deputy foreign affairs ministry spokeswoman Andrea Susse.

The conference aims to prepare the upcoming summit of government leaders, which will be held under Chancellor Angela Merkel's direction in early July.

According to Sasse, besides foreign ministers of the Western Balkan countries, the foreign ministers of several EU member states, as well as Enlargement Commissioner Olivér Várhely and European Foreign Action Service Secretary General Stefano Sannino are participating.

Europe's Foreground

The Berlin Process is an initiative by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, established in 2014.

It aims to improve regional co-operation among Western Balkan countries to thus support the six countries' EU membership process: Albania, Kosovo, Northern Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia.

The process is considered also “The EU's paradex1>. After Germany, as initiator, the summit organisers have so far been Austria, France, Great Britain, Italy, Poland and Bulgaria/Macedonia. One of the current achievements of the Berlin Procees is the adoption of the plan for the joint regional market and the approach of young people via the RYCO network.

However, unresolved conflicts between states in the region have been a constant obstacle to the proper functioning of initiatives stemming from the Berlin Process. /dw/