Prime Minister Edi Rama received economic ministers from 20 regional and European countries in Tirana on Tuesday as part of the Berlin process and stressed that the EU needs the Western Balkans as much as the region needs it.
The Berlin summit is due to be held in Tirana on October 16, bringing together regional and European leaders to facilitate cooperation, while Tuesday’s Euro-Balkan ministerial meeting of economy ministers, held before the main summit , saw 20 high-level delegations around the table. .
“The EU needs the Western Balkans as much as the Western Balkans need the European Union. We are here to discuss the most essential topics of this process, which include strengthening our economies and inclusion in the EU economic sphere,” Rama said, adding stronger EU interest in region as it begins to understand its importance. importance.
“At a defining moment, the time has come to think outside the box, which is what we are trying to do with this summit, what we feel through all the communications with our friends,” Rama added.
Ines Mucostepa, President of the Union of Chambers of Commerce of Albania, said that 6,000 companies from the Western Balkans are ready and meet the conditions to invest in the EU.
“The pandemic, the energy crisis, the war in Ukraine have affected the regional economy and made us realize that it has excluded certain countries from the market. Therefore, the Western Balkans must be helped because they are rich in natural resources that enable new projects,” she said.
She added that Europeans must understand the potential of the Western Balkans and a development program must be created to support them.
French Minister of Foreign Trade and the Economy, Olivier Becht. said the plan for Europe’s growth must be delivered quickly.
“We need to speed up this process. This requires more economics and integration for the entire region… We have one goal: to accelerate connections between the Western Balkans and EU countries. This will facilitate the private sector and speed up the EU accession process,” Becht said.
Rama added that “things have changed and we see with great interest that there is a much stronger conviction within the EU and they are more open about the importance of the Western Balkans for the EU” .
(Alice Taylor | Euractiv.com)