Borrell: Progress in the dialogue for a clear European perspective for Kosovo and Serbia

Progress in the dialogue is the only way for Kosovo and Serbia to have a clear European perspective, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the EU, Josep Borrell, emphasized ahead of the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Brussels.

Borrell told reporters that he was pleased to have the opportunity at the Summit to present all the work and effort invested in the Western Balkans.

"We live in a difficult and challenging environment, and it affects us, our neighborhood, and the Western Balkans as well. This means that we have to work in two directions. One direction is the enlargement, which needs to accelerate. The other is in the field of foreign policy to support those more aligned with our foreign and security policy. The more aligned they are with our foreign policy, the more they face security threats", he explained.

When it comes to the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, he emphasized that the EU had invested a lot of time and energy into this process.

"This process has had ups and downs, and many crises, but also brought solutions, such as agreements on registration, ID cards, and energy. In recent days, we have had good news from both sides. They are progressing, albeit slowly. We must push them further to continue on that path because it is the only way to have a clear European perspective", Borrell stated.

When asked about the timing of the next high-level meeting, he said that the dialogue continued, and it was an ongoing process.

He pointed out that the EU Special Representative for the dialogue visited Kosovo and Serbia, and when the time comes, there would be high-level meetings as needed.

He announced investments of two million euros to strengthen the resilience of North Macedonia, Albania, and Montenegro against new types of warfare and cyber threats.

Borrell emphasized that enlargement was the EU's most important foreign policy.

"We need to make progress in enlargement. We must deliver what we promised", he concluded.