American Embassy: Support Open Balkans, successful unless it includes all countries

Washington has official support for this idea. US Ambassador to Belgrade Christopher Hill has expressed his support for the initiative.

But what do they say from the US Embassy in Pristina??

Asked if they think that Kosovo should join this initiative, in a response to Gazeta Express from the US Embassy in Pristina, they have said that Kosovo is an independent state that has the right to determine its own foreign policy priorities, until they add how the US supports comprehensive efforts aimed at boosting regional co-operation, including the “Balkan Open Policy”.

As they underline this, from the US Embassy stress that ideas like “Open Balkans”, the Joint Regional Market and the Berlin Process can only succeed if they are open to all countries and are in line with European standards.

“As a sovereign and independent state, Kosovo has the right to determine its foreign policy priorities. That said, the US supports sweeping efforts to ensure regional economic integration. These include the Berlin Process, the Common Regional Market, CEFTA and the <x1Balkan Open Initiative. However, these initiatives can only succeed if they are open to all countries and provide adequate legal and regulatory systems that integrate with European standards”, the US Embassy's spokesman in Pristina has said.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti, and President Vjosa Osmani openly oppose the initiative of “Balkan Open”. Kosovo Government chief Albin Kurti, following the meeting he had with German Chancellor Olaf Schelz in Berlin, has said Kosovo does not support other parallel initiatives with the Berlin Process.

We also talked about Regional Co-operation. Regional co-operation for Kosovo is not substitute for EU membership, but acceleration. We fully support the Berlin Process and welcomed the Chancellor's commitment to resume this process with a new dynamic. We also support the Common Regional Market, which lies within the Berlin Process and EU rules, is comprehensive, has four freedoms, so we do not support other parallel initiatives. For Kosovo it is important that citizens in this process be final beneficiaries, exactly as Chancellor Scholz said. The equality of the parties and equal treatment is important, while recognition of the documents is essential to implement any agreement reached”, Prime Minister Kurti had declared after meeting with the German Chancellor.

President Vjosa Osmani, also after his meeting with Albanian counterpart, Ilir Meta, has voiced her opposition to the “Open Balkans initiative. In an anti- “Balkan Open”, Meta-Osman joins Montenegrin President Milo Djukanovic, who thinks differently from Abazovic.

Montenegro's new prime minister, Dritan Abazovic, in an interview for Deutche Welle has stated that a case of the “Balkan Open” shouldn't be dramatised and that his opinion is that initiatives that help integration into the EU are welcome, but not those that tend to be replacement for integration.

For me this situation is simple and should be dramatized. Anything that can be used as a tool for quick EU integration is good. For anything else that can be seen as replacing European integration, we are not interested. So everything that helps us get into the EU faster, like the region or as a state, for us is ok”, Abazovic said.

Asked whether “Open Balkan” is against the concept of the Berlin Process, Abazovic has said such a thing is not true and that the Balkan Open with the Berlin Process is compatible.

He further says that people in the Western Balkans try to dramatize every issue, until he adds that all initiatives such as the Berlin Process, CEFTA and “Open Balkans have a common regional co-operation message.

Following that stance, Abazovic and Serbian President Aleksandar Vuciq met in Davos a few days ago, since the Serbian president has called on Montenegro's prime minister to join the next meeting of the Open “Balkan” to be held in Ohrid.