Debate: - Reports on Albania – - Reports on Kosovo – - Reports on North Macedonia – - Reports on Serbia
Date: THURSDAY, 25 MARCH 2021
Speaker: Ana Paula Zacarias
Language: EN

And let me begin by recalling the EU’s unequivocal support for the European perspective of the Western Balkans region based on fair and rigorous conditionality and on the principles of own merits. The Portuguese Presidency remains committed to strengthening the EU engagement with the region, in particular in these challenging times of the coronavirus crisis. I would like to recall that the Council, in its conclusions of March 2020, decided to open the accession negotiations with the Republic of North Macedonia and the Republic of Albania. And I concur with you in welcoming the determination demonstrated by these two countries to advance on the EU reform agenda and to deliver tangible and sustained results. These decisions pave the way for the important work on the framework for negotiations that is still going on in the Council. The Presidency is determined to continue the work with a view to holding the first intergovernmental conferences and formally opening the accession negotiations has soon as possible. As you know, in March 2020, the Council endorsed the Commission communication enhancing the accession process. The objective is to make this process more predictable, more credible, dynamic and subject to stronger political steering, based on objective criteria and rigorous positive and negative conditionality and reversibility. At the same time, it underlines that fundamental, democratic rule-of-law and economic reforms represent the core objective of the accession process. The proper functioning and independence of the democratic institutions are essential elements of well-functioning democracies and a key condition for EU accession. In this regard, let me stress the importance of continued reforms and their implementation by both the Republic of North Macedonia and the Republic of Albania. Regarding the Republic of North Macedonia in particular, I would like to stress that the Portuguese Presidency, along with the Commission, has been actively supporting all efforts to find pragmatic solutions to pave the way for the approval of the negotiation framework in the Council with a view to holding the first intergovernmental conference as soon as possible. Consistent progress has been achieved, but at the same time, we also urge the authorities and the political parties of North Macedonia to sustain their efforts to strengthen democracy and implement the deeper reforms. With regard to Albania, constructive political dialogue and cooperation in parliament between the government and the opposition is essential for progress and the sustainability of the reforms. Even after the electoral reform, the political environment remains strongly paralysed and we stress the importance of further strengthening the political dialogue within the country. We also commend Albania for its continuous 100% alignment with EU common foreign and security policy, which serves as a positive example for the entire region. Now on Serbia, I would like to start by underlining that the President’s aim is to hold an intergovernmental conference if possible, still this semester, under the revised enlargement methodology and to advance the EU enlargement process as much as possible. As you well know, the pace of the accession negotiations will continue to depend on Serbia’s own progress and reform efforts, in particular in the key areas of the rule of law and in the normalisation of relations with Kosovo. We welcome the fact that the new Serbian Government has made EU integration and the normalisation of relations with Kosovo its priority. Despite some advances, we need to see more progress on the rule of law and we need to see more, faster implementation of the reforms. It is particularly important that the reforms focus on the independence of the judiciary, the fight against corruption, media freedom, domestic handling of war crimes and the fight against organised crime. It is also important that Serbia fulfils its commitment and steps up its efforts in gradually aligning with EU common foreign and security policy. We encourage parliamentarian political forces in Serbia to engage in the inter-party dialogue, led by the European Parliament, with a view to forging broad cross-party and societal consensus on EU-related reforms. And I really would like to thank the European Parliament for its relentless efforts in this process. We also welcome the resumption of the EU-facilitated Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue. It’s important that it will continue. It’s important that we will get some concrete results. We expect Serbia and the new government in Kosovo to engage in this dialogue in good faith and in the spirit of compromise to achieve a comprehensive, legally binding agreement in accordance with international law and the EU  The Stabilisation and Association Agreement offers Kosovo an opportunity for sustainable progress and rapprochement with the European Union, in line with the European perspective on the region. At the same time, it creates opportunities for trade and investment. We share your concerns about the limited progress in reforms in Kosovo and the challenging domestic political context marked by early elections and several changes in government. We certainly call for an acceleration of the reforms and all political actors must now deliver. We recognise the importance of visa liberalisation for Kosovo’s citizens and the Portuguese Presidency will continue to follow this matter. Finally, I would like to stress, as some of you have mentioned here, that the COVID-19 crisis continues to have a severe negative impact on all our societies and on all our economies, and the EU is providing significant support to the Western Balkans, including to Kosovo. So let me assure you that we remain committed to continuing this important cooperation. Thank you very much for your attention, and thank you, Madam President, for your indulgence.