President of the European Commission, Ursula von der LeyenBefore attending an informal dinner with regional leaders in Athens, he reassured Western Balkan countries seeking to join the European Union this Monday that they needed to “get closer” and “faster”.
“We have to bring our friends, the promising members of the EU, much closer and do it much faster,” Von der Leyen said via social network X (formerly Twitter).
German politics was pleased to be in the Greek capital today to “discuss the European perspective of our neighbors and partners in the Eastern and Western Balkans”. “We will continue to break down the barriers between our regions,” he said.
The spokesperson of the President of the European Commission reported that Von der Leyen arrived in Athens last week at the invitation of Greek Prime Minister Kyriacos Mitsotakis. He later stated that he would attend “an informal dinner with the leaders of the Western Balkans and other leaders of the region”.
This is 2023, the 20th anniversary of the Thessaloniki European Council, This confirmed that all countries participating in the EU Stabilization and Association Process are potential candidates for Union membership.
This “European perspective” was reaffirmed in the Commission’s strategy for the Western Balkans in February 2018 and in the declarations that followed the successive summits between the Union and the countries of that region.