The European Union will provide an additional 200 million euros to Albania and Montenegro in the coming days as part of the Western Balkans growth plan. The announcement was made by the EU Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, at the meeting in Brussels between European foreign ministers and those from our region.
“The implementation of the growth plan is progressing well. We will soon distribute around 200 million euros to Albania and Montenegro. We are achieving tangible results when it comes to gradual integration. As you know, last week Serbia joined Albania, Montenegro, and North Macedonia in the SEPA agreement. Enlargement is a priority for the European Union. If candidate states succeed with reforms, then we must also keep our promises,” said EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos. Regarding close cooperation with the countries of our region, the head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, also spoke, emphasizing the need for these states to face hybrid threats. “We are discussing with foreign ministers about enlargement, about what more we can do so these Western Balkan countries can move forward with reforms. We are also discussing cooperation regarding how these states deal with hybrid threats that arise in this region, as we consider them attacks against their democracy. What we expect from these states is alignment with our foreign and security policy and the necessary reforms,” said EU Foreign Policy Representative Kaja Kallas. Kallas stated that frequent election cycles in Kosovo are the main reason why there has not been a new round of dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade at the leadership level for some time. Also present at this meeting was Foreign Minister Hoxha, who told his European counterparts that Albania is determined to do whatever is necessary to remain at the forefront of the enlargement process.
