The stability of the Western Balkans, its prosperity and compliance with the foreign policy of the European Union is of vital importance for us, said today the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Policy and Security Josep Borrell, before the beginning of the meeting with the foreign ministers of the NATO countries in Brussels.
“You know how important the Western Balkans is for the European Union. Many members of the European Union are engaged in this region, and some countries of the Western Balkans are candidates for the European Union. Therefore, their stability, their prosperity and their compliance with our foreign policy is for us of of vital importance,” Borrell said.
He emphasized the importance of cooperation between the European Union and NATO in Kosovo and the north of Kosovo.
“Our EULEX mission was deployed in strong cooperation with KFOR because we were facing difficult times. And we will continue to ensure the stability and security of this part of Kosovo, on the border with Serbia,” he said.
In his address to journalists, he reiterated the important role EULEX plays in this.
“It has been working for years and will continue. But we call on Serbia and Kosovo to increase their will to seek an agreement in order to clear their European path,” said Borrell.
He said that the European Union has also deployed a mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina – EUFOR ALTHEA – and emphasized that this mission is one of the most successful in the Western Balkans.
“It is a long-term mission, the mandate of which was recently renewed, which is a clear proof of the importance that the international community attaches to our ALTHEA mission. On this occasion, we ask the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina to avoid any kind of division, to join forces in order to take advantage of this geopolitical moment in which enlargement becomes a key issue for the future of the European Union and for the future of the countries of the Western Balkans,” said Borrell.
He repeated how good it is that the European Union has increased its cooperation with NATO in all fields, and especially in these two places, with EULEX and the ALTHEA mission.
Source : Sarajevotimes