ZAGREB, May 7, 2020 - The European Union sent from the Zagreb Summit on Wednesday a strong message to Western Balkan countries that they have an unequivocal European perspective and that their future is in the EU.

Leaders of the EU's 27 member states and six Western Balkan countries held a summit via video link because of the coronavirus pandemic.

"Although the meeting, unfortunately, was not held as would have liked, by physically coming together in Zagreb, in terms of content we have achieved results in line with our expectations and those of our south-eastern neighbours," Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković one of the co-organisers of the summit, said at a press conference.

"I'm sure the peoples and states in our neighbourhood will appreciate the message that was sent today from Zagreb and all other capitals of the EU member states," he added.

"The European Union wants to continue to support the countries of Southeast Europe on their path to the EU. We wanted to send a message for the continuation of the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue. Croatia especially underlined that Bosnia and Herzegovina as its nearest neighbour deserves membership candidate status and that it should be helped in that. In that context, we underlined the issue of the equality of the constituent peoples in Bosnia and Herzegovina, notably the status of the Croatian people in terms of legitimate representation in the highest BiH institutions," Plenković said.

He pushed for holding such EU-Western Balkans summits every two years at least.

He said he was pleased the blockade of a decision to open accession negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania was lifted during Croatia's EU presidency.

Asked if some countries in the region should be more grateful to the EU and kiss the European flag instead of China's, as Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić did, Plenković said it was not up to him to talk on anyone's behalf but that all six Western Balkan countries had clearly articulated their European orientation.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the Western Balkans was an absolute priority for the EU and that this region belonged to the EU.

She underlined the importance of reforms, notably regarding freedom of the press, which she said was the cornerstone of the EU and the best instrument in the fight against disinformation.

European Council President Charles Michel underlined the importance of the Zagreb Declaration which once again reaffirmed the European perspective of Western Balkan countries.

He welcomed the €3.3 billion aid package which the EU set aside for them to deal with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

More news about Croatia and the EU can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, May 5, 2020 - The European perspective, the commitment of the Western Balkan countries to the European Union and cooperation in the coronavirus crisis are the key elements of a declaration that will be adopted at the central event of the Croatian EU presidency in Zagreb on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman said on Tuesday.

On the initiative of the Croatian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the summit of the 27 EU member states and the six Western Balkan countries, scheduled for May 6, will be held online in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

"Cooperation in dealing with the pandemic, giving the Western Balkan countries the European perspective and these countries' commitment to European values" are the key elements of the Zagreb Declaration, Grlić Radman told the press outside the government offices.

He recalled that North Macedonia and Albania had been given the green light on their path to EU membership which he said was "a great Croatian success".

Zagreb will again host a summit on the European perspective of Southeast Europe, just as it did 20 years ago when Croatia was not yet a member of the EU. The next summit was held in Thessaloniki in 2003 and the last one took place two years ago in Sofia.

The Croatian EU Presidency has proposed that summits on European integration be held every two years, Grlić Radman said.

"Not all EU members are equally interested in enlargement. There is still talk of what the future will bring with new members, but Croatia has shown the initiative in this regard," he said.

More news about Croatia and the Western Balkans can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, May 2, 2020 - Croatian Foreign and European Affairs Minister Gordan Grlić Radman said on Saturday that Croatia would send protective gear to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania and Montenegro and that shipments were worth HRK 1.2 million (€158,000).

Zagreb will send shipments of protective masks, tents, blankets, sleeping bags and so on.

"In this way we strengthen our friendship and cooperation," Minister Grlić Radman said.

He added that Croatia had tackled the coronavirus epidemic in the most organised manner in comparison to other European countries.

More coronavirus news can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, April 9, 2020 - A summit of EU member states and Western Balkan countries scheduled for May 6-7 in Zagreb will most likely be held via video link at an appropriate time, Croatian government spokesman Marko Milić told Hina on Wednesday.

He said the summit would not take place on those days because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković as the chairman of the Council of the EU, European Council President Charles Michel and other partners are consulting about the possibility of holding a video conference at the most suitable time, Milić said.

The summit was planned as the main event of Croatia's presidency of the Council of the EU, which ends on June 30.

The Croatian presidency said earlier it had decided to postpone until May 15 at the earliest all informal meetings and conferences which were to have taken place in Croatia in order to curb the spread of the pandemic and alleviate its effects.

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ZAGREB, April 3, 2020 - The COVID-19 pandemic is a global issue hence it is especially important to help the Western Balkans as a European region, Croatia's Foreign and European Affairs Minister Gordan Grlić Radman said after a video conference of EU foreign ministers, stressing that the EU has been generous in that regard.

The meeting, which was presided by the EU's High Representative Josep Borrell, discussed aid for third countries in curbing the pandemic which has killed 53,693 people in the world while 1,035,380 are infected with the virus in 188 countries.

"The pandemic is a global issue and we need to help third countries and the Western Balkans urgently need EU assistance. The Union has been generous because that area is a European area and it deserves our attention," Grlić Radman said after the meeting.

According to Grlić Radman the meeting discussed the situation in northern Africa, Latin America and Asia.

"They all need the EU's help and the European Commission is preparing a comprehensive aid package which will be discussed at the next Foreign Affairs Council" he said.

Italy, which is the most affected country in Europe with the coronavirus pandemic and a death toll of 13,915 and 115,242 COVID-19 cases, three weeks ago accused the European Union of "lacking solidarity," and particularly after Germany and France banned the sale of protective equipment.

Italy's Ambassador to the EU Maurizio Massari said early March that he expected Brussels to stop "consulting" and to launch "emergency measures that are immediate, concrete and effective."

The head of the European People's Party (EPP) group in the European Parliament, Manfred Weber also criticised Germany saying that it was crazy that China had shown solidarity with Italy and not Germany.

On Thursday the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen apologised to Italy for lack of solidarity from Europe in tackling the coronavirus crisis.

As far as the Western Balkans region is concerned, a package of aid worth €38 million is being prepared for Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Serbia, to address the pandemic. The aid will be made available immediately so these countries can procure medical equipment and other requirements for their health systems.

An additional €373 million is being prepared for short and medium term aid for the period after the health crisis to help those six countries to deal with the social-economic consequences.

More coronavirus news can be found in the Lifestyle section.

ZAGREB, February 24, 2020 - Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, who on Monday attended the EBRD's Western Balkans Investment Summit 2020 in London, called on potential investors to invest in that part of Europe.

Croatia will do all it can to help its southeast neighbours and the investment community needs to utilise this opportunity to the benefit of those countries and for the benefit of the entire European Union, said Plenković at the event organised by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

The summit meeting was opened by EBRD President Suma Chakrabarti and Prime Minister of Croatia, Andrej Plenkoviž, in his current position as holder of the European Union presidency.

This is the fourth EBRD summit of its kind; the inaugural Western Balkans Summit took place at the EBRD in February 2014 and, for the first time, brought together all the region’s six prime minister: Duško Marković of Montenegro, Edi Rama of Albania, Oliver Spasovski of North Macedonia, Zoran Tegeltija of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albin Kurti of Kosovo and Ana Brnabić of Serbia.

We are a country that is the most familiar with that region and which is offering support to those countries so that their path to the European Union can be accelerated. That is one of the key priorities, Plenković said.

He added that as the presiding country of the EU, Croatia had already achieved success in putting the topic of EU enlargement high on the agenda. That has motivated some other member states to organise high-level meetings ahead of the Zagreb summit in May on the topic of enlargement to the Western Balkans, he added.

As the leading investor in the region we are looking forward to this fourth edition of EBRD's Western Balkan investment summit which is a priority for the EBRD. Our aim is to unlock the potential of that region supporting a greater economic growth and its regional and European integration, Charkrbarti said. He announced that six new projects would be signed for the Western Balkans.

The EBRD has invested to date 13 billion in the Western Balkan countries.

More news about Croatia and Western Balkans can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, February 17, 2020 - Raising the topic of enlargement to Southeast European countries to the highest level in the EU and changing the atmosphere about it will a big, positive political legacy of the Croatian presidency of the Council of the EU, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said in Brussels on Sunday.

As premier of the country presiding the Council, he attended an informal working dinner of European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell with the leaders of Croatia's six Southeast European neighbours which are candidates or potential candidates for EU membership.

The meeting was held as part of preparations for a summit of leaders of all EU member states leaders and Western Balkan countries in Zagreb on May 6-7.

Plenković described the meeting as very good and timely. "We positioned the topic of Southeast Europe high on the agenda of EU institutions," he said, adding that Greece, Austria and Italy had announced such preparatory meetings prior to the Zagreb Summit.

"This means that we have mobilised EU member states about this topic to a level that didn't exist. Most important for us before the Zagreb meeting is to resolve the issue of the opening of negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania, and we will try to have that decision adopted in March."

Plenković said he wanted the Commission to present in Zagreb a strong investment package for Southeast Europe, that summits between the EU and the countries in that region be held at least every two years, and that those countries gradually meet membership criteria and raise their citizens' living standards on the membership journey. "That will be a big, positive legacy of the Croatian presidency of the Council of the EU for our six neighbouring countries."

Plenković said that next week, at an EU27 summit, he would talk which the prime ministers of Denmark and the Netherlands, which had reservations in October regarding the opening of negotiations with Albania. France, which had the strongest objections, has changed its position after the Commission put forward a new accession negotiations methodology.

Plenković said that during Croatia's EU presidency he would also try to solve the visa liberalisation issue for Kosovo citizens. "Croatia believes Kosovo has met the criteria for waiving visas. There are several countries which don't share that view but I believe that, in intensive negotiations within the Council and in a generally better atmosphere, we could find a solution to an important issue for Kosovo citizens."

Prior to the meeting, von der Leyen said it was in the EU's geostrategic interest to have the closest relations possible with Western Balkan countries, confirming that the Commission was preparing an investment package for the region for the Zagreb Summit.

Michel said he expected honest, open and constructive talks on partnership with the leaders of the six Western Balkan countries.

More news about Croatia and the EU can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, February 7, 2020 - European Council President Charles Michel has convened for February 16 an informal meeting with Western Balkan countries' leaders which will also be attended by Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković as the premier of the country presiding over the Council of the European Union.

The meeting will also be attended by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell.

The meeting has been convened as part of preparations for an informal summit of all EU member states and Western Balkan states due in Zagreb in May.

On Wednesday, the Commission proposed a new, stricter methodology for EU accession negotiations, which was France's condition for opening them with North Macedonia and Albania.

More news about Croatia and Western Balkans can be found in the Politics section.

ZAGREB, January 21, 2020 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Tuesday it was good that the focus of the Croatian EU presidency was on the countries of South-eastern Europe because the process of integration of these countries into the European Union was not a priority for the Union.

Plenković was speaking to Croatian reporters covering his attendance at the annual summit of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos. Together with leaders from Central and Eastern Europe, he participated in panels on diplomatic dialogue on the Western Balkans and on generating growth in Central and Eastern Europe, and held a number of bilateral meetings.

"I'm trying to calibrate the expectations of all our neighbours from the Croatian presidency of the EU this year because, realistically speaking, it is good that Croatia is putting the focus on the countries of South-eastern Europe given so many other important topics," Plenković said.

"If someone else was the president now, I doubt that this would be a topic, given Brexit and a new contractual relationship with the United Kingdom, a seven-year budget that is yet to be adopted, a conference on the future of Europe and the Green Deal package," he added.

Plenković said that the World Economic Forum was an excellent opportunity to talk to heads of state and government and leaders of international organisations, financial institutions and large companies that are interested in cooperation.

He said that during the EU presidency it was important to "dynamise relations between our neighbours and the European Union," expressing hope that the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Zagreb in May would be a success.

"There are quite great expectations from the Zagreb summit in May. It will be an opportunity, I hope, to unblock this situation with North Macedonia and Albania, take a step further and define the future relationship with all the countries in our neighbourhood in the next decade," the Croatian PM said.

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ZAGREB, January 12, 2020 - Croatian Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina Ivan Sabolić has said BiH will have Croatia's full support on its European integration path during Croatia's presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of this year.

EU membership is BiH's strategic goal and the desire of a significant part of its population, he said on Saturday at an event which the Croatian Embassy in Sarajevo organised on the occasion of Croatia's EU presidency.

"Croatia is willing to help BiH on that path with its fresh negotiating process experience as well as its status as a European Union member state. We will push for Bosnia and Herzegovina's possible progress towards candidate status," Sabolić said.

Croatia now has the chance, in partnership with the member states and all institutions, to make its special contribution to Europe and one of the priorities is strengthening the European prospects of Southeast Europe, he added.

"We will push for the continuation of a consistent, effective and credible enlargement policy based on the confirmed European perspective of the candidates and the potential candidates, with the full meeting of the defined criteria. As the youngest member state, we are aware of the transforming power of the accession process. The European idea of unity encourages change, suppresses the syndromes and myths of the past, introduces new rules and new values."

Sabolić said it was clear that European unification could not end before all the Southeast European countries gradually became EU members. Therefore, he said, enlargement should be confirmed as a component of the idea of a united Europe.

"We can talk about the pace but we must not bring the goal into question. It's a process in which no one must give up. It's necessary to encourage constant and persevering dialogue. It's a door we want to keep open," he said.

More news about Croatia and the EU can be found in the Politics section.