Brussels, 20 September 2024
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, was received today in Brussels by the General Director for Enlargement of the European Union, Gert Jan Koopman, with whom he discussed the many aspects of the process of Kosovo’s integration into the EU, including the perspective for advancing the candidacy for membership in the current European context.
In the meeting, other issues related to the EU expansion process in the Western Balkans region were discussed, including the need for the functionalization of the Common Regional Market, on the principles of equal participation for all the states of the region.
Prime Minister Kurti said that Kosovo is interested in making the Common Regional Market functional, especially now when the 10th anniversary of the Berlin Process is being marked, and added that this should be achieved by advancing in the direction of bringing the region closer to European standards, such as those in the field of the economy, as well as those in the field of democracy and the rule of law.
He emphasized that for Kosovo, the current obstacles in its progress are related to the security situation and the constant threat coming from Serbia, and which he said that Kosovo seeks to address in cooperation with its Western partners, precisely because of the many connections and Serbia’s close relationship with Russia.
At the meeting, the beginning of the implementation of the Growth Plan was also discussed, as an instrument of the European Commission created to give a great impetus to the fastest and most comprehensive rapprochement of the countries of the Western Balkans with the EU.
Speaking about the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue process, which is a separate process but which has an impact on the expansion of the EU, Prime Minister Kurti said that the Republic of Kosovo has always been a constructive party and that he is interested in the conclusion of this process. In this sense, the Prime Minister has confirmed to Director Koopman his position in support of the Basic Agreement and the Implementation Plan, reached last year.
Kosovo, hereby, reaffirms its commitment to the process of normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia and pledges constructive engagement in the process to move it forward quickly. In this context, Kosovo pledges to fully implement all respective obligations arising from the Basic Agreement on the Road to Normalization and its Implementing Annex, including all past dialogue agreements. The implementation details will be discussed in the dialogue under the facilitation of the EU, Prime Minister Kurti said.
For his part, General Director Koopman conveyed the message that the commitment of the European institutions in Brussels to the integration of Kosovo and the entire Western Balkan region in the EU is strong and will continue to be so even with the future composition of the European Commission, which has been proven by the positions expressed by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, at yesterday’s lunch with the leaders of the Western Balkans.
Last modified: September 20, 2024