SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) — Italy’s foreign minister on Tuesday expressed strong support for reform in the Western Balkans. European Union accession proposals, noting that otherwise the region could lean towards Russia or China.
Speaking during a visit to North MacedoniaAntonio Tajani said the bloc “must lend a helping hand to those peoples who want to belong to us Europeans.”
“If we don’t do that, there will be someone else who will want to replace us, I mean Russia, China and other parts of the world, I mean Turkey,” Tajani said.
He spoke at a press conference with his North Macedonian counterpart Timcho Mutsunski in the capital Skopje.
Tajani said that Italy “is working and will work for North Macedonia to become an effective member of the European Union as soon as possible.”
North Macedonia and neighboring Albania have been candidates to join the EU since 2005. In 2022, they began negotiations on membership of the bloc, a process that is expected to take years.
The other countries in the Western Balkans that want to join the EU are Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Kosovo.
Disputes with neighbouring EU member states have delayed accession talks for North Macedonia. A decades-long row with Greece over the use of the name Macedonia and the region’s ancient heritage was resolved in 2018.
But a new dispute has arisen with Bulgaria, which also revolves around Balkan history, language and culture.
Following pressure from Bulgaria, the EU has called on North Macedonia to amend its constitution to include a reference to the existence of an ethnic Bulgarian minority so that the accession process can proceed.
In return, Bulgaria would withdraw its objections to North Macedonia’s accession.
The previous centre-left government in Skopje had agreed to the constitutional amendment, but failed to obtain the required majority in parliament. new conservative government strongly opposes the proposed change and is doing everything it can to delay it.
