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Merkel Seeks to Reassure Western Balkans On EU, Stresses 'Strategic Interest'

RFE/RL

   German Chancellor Angela Merkel sought to reassure Western Balkan
   nations that support for their membership in the European Union remains
   strong, stressing that it is in the bloc's "strategic interest" to
   bring in the new members.

   Merkel told a Western Balkan summit in Poznan, Poland, on Friday that
   concerns expressed by French President Emmanuel Macron that the
   countries' governance mechanisms become more efficient should not delay
   accession talks.

   "I share President Macron's view that the EU's working mechanisms must
   be improved," she said. "I don't see that as an abandonment of the
   accession talks."

   She added that the accession process for Balkan nations aspiring for
   membership --Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo
   and North Macedonia --was sufficiently lengthy to allow time for
   improvements to be made.

   North Macedonia hailed

   Speaking at a news conference as the summit concluded, Merkel singled
   out North Macedonia's "courage" in trying to overcome divisive issues
   with its neighbors, especially a dispute over its name with Greece.

   Athens opposed the country's use of the name Macedonia, saying it
   implied territorial designs on the Greek province of the same name. A
   compromisewas reached, leading Skopje to change the country's name to
   North Macedonia.

   "That was a huge step. We waited for years for this step and we are
   very relieved," Merkel said.

   "I look optimistically toward the autumn" for the opening of membership
   talks, she added.

   Last month, EU member states postponed until October a decision on
   whether to open accession talks with North Macedonia and Albania, amid
   resistance from some bloc members, including France and the
   Netherlands.

   The latest EU strategy for the region suggests membership for
   Montenegro and Serbia by 2025, but officials have said that goal is
   "extremely ambitious."