Summit discusses the Balkans' road to Europe

09/01/2006

The Western Balkans have entered a critical period, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn told a high-level summit on the future of the Balkans last month, citing the Kosovo issue.

By Antonela Arhin for Southeast European Times – 01/09/06

EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn (right) and Prime Minister of Montenegro Milo Djukanovic hold a press conference in Brussels on 8 December 2005. [AFP]

The future of the Balkans was the subject of a high-level international summit in December that brought together EU policymakers, government officials, business leaders, NGO representatives, academics and members of the international press. Titled "Bringing the Balkans into Mainstream Europe", the event was held at the Palais d'Egmont in Brussels.

Discussion focused on three main questions: 1) Are the Balkans becoming part of the European economy, 2) Which Balkans countries are headed for EU membership, and 3) What are the do's and don'ts of Balkan reconstruction and development?

The Western Balkans are going through a critical period, particularly due to the beginning of talks related to the resolution of Kosovo's status, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn told the summit.

Discussing the enlargement process, he described it as one of the pillars of the EU's international and security policy. Despite a slowdown triggered in part by the bloc's budgetary and constitutional problems, the EU remains committed to the stability, prosperity and future EU membership of countries in the region, Rehn stressed.

The year 2006 will crucial for these countries, the commissioner said. Commenting on the recent arrest of Croatian war crimes indictee Ante Gotovina, Rehn said Croatia serves as an example of co-operation with The Hague -- an example which Serbia-Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina should follow.

Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic agreed, urging Belgrade to act accordingly. Discussing the economic situation in the region, Djukanovic said the level of FDI in the Western Balkans remains below its potential. This, he argued, was mainly due to the unresolved political processes.

Djukanovic commended the countries of the Western Balkans for recognising the importance of regional co-operation as an evolutionary step towards adopting business principles functioning in the EU. As examples, he cited the current process of establishing a free trade zone in the South East Europe, activities in the framework of the investment agreement between the OECD and the Stability Pact, joint efforts to combat corruption and organised crime, and the recently signed agreement on the Energy Community in Athens.

Serbian President Boris Tadic also addressed the summit. He urged a "European solution" for Kosovo, which he described as a broad form of self-government that would not violate Serbian sovereignty over the province, and called for measures aimed at ensuring the protection of Kosovo's Serb minority.

The summit was organised by the Brussels-based think tank Friends of Europe in partnership with the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, the Constantinos Karamanlis Institute for Democracy and the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe.