The EU-Western Balkans Summit will not be about enlargement, but rather about topics related to the Growth Plan, alignment of Western Balkan partners with the Common Foreign and Security Policy, impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on their respective economies, and dealing with migration, according to European Council sources.
“So, the meeting will not see a discussion on matters related to the negotiations process, such as the North Macedonia constitutional changes issue”, the sources point out.
However, the issue could be raised in the frames of the Summit’s debate on reconciliation, though, in their view, that debate shouldn’t be related to the negotiating process. The sources stress that North Macedonia, as is the case with the other candidate countries, should work on meeting criteria laid down in the Negotiating Framework, including the constitutional changes.
“We hope they will be made as soon as possible and the negotiations process will proceed successfully”, they point out.
The draft-conclusions of the summit say that reconciliation, inclusive regional cooperation, and good-neighbourly relations are the EU’s core, which is why it’s essential to, in good faith and with visible results, implement international treaties, including the Prespa Agreement with Greece and Friendship, Good-Neighbourliness, and Cooperation Treaty with Bulgaria.