FM attends EU-W. Balkans Ministerial Conference

FM attends EU-W. Balkans Ministerial Conference

The conference will begin with a working breakfast for the foreign ministers of the Western Balkans and European Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Fule.

“The Ministerial Conference is an opportunity to re-affirm the European future of the region. The meeting, organized by Greece as the holder of the EU Presidency, symbolically marks one decade since the adoption of the Thessaloniki Agenda, which paved the way for the European integration of the Western Balkans,” the release said.

After recent visits to Serbia by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton and Stefan Fule, the participation in the conference in Thessaloniki will be yet another opportunity to confirm Serbia’s commitment to EU integration, the release said.

The meeting in Thessaloniki will provide Dačić with the opportunity to hold a number of bilateral meetings. On Thursday, he will meet with Italian Foreign Minister Frederico Mogerini.

Greece, the holder of the EU Presidency for the first half of 2014, said that the conference in Thessaloniki will be an opportunity for the EU and the countries in the Western Balkans to reconfirm their commitment to the latter’s European perspective.

“At the same time it is important to determine ways of further promoting the European agenda of the region, including by having a positive direct impact in the lives of citizens, irrespective of or in parallel with progress made in the accession process by their respective countries,” says the website of the Greek EU Presidency.

The Greek Foreign Ministry said in a release on Tuesday that the conference will include two sessions.

The first, titled “2004-2014: Ten Years of Enlargement and the European Integration of the Western Balkans,” will see its participants reaffirming the EU’s commitment to the region’s European future and the Western Balkan countries’ resolve to pursue the path of EU-related reforms and discussing the enlargement policy achievements and challenges, with a view to further promoting the European agenda in the Western Balkans.

A working luncheon will be an opportunity for the participants to exchange views on how to strengthen the European integration of the Western Balkans through establishment of connections in the energy and transportation sectors within the region and with the EU and promoting growth, competitiveness and job creation.

Its participants will also discuss partnership in broader geostrategic terms.

In the second session, titled “Beyond the Thessaloniki Agenda: Transport and Energy Connectivity,” participants will discuss the need of investing in infrastructure in the transport and energy sectors and exchange views on ways and means to enhance cooperation and financial assistance.

According to the release, Greek Minister Venizelos should hold a number of bilateral meetings with his counterparts from the countries of the Western Balkans on the sidelines of the conference.