At the closing panel discussion on Europe’s future in the frames of the Munich Security conference, Latvian President Rinkevics said the EU had lost its credibility in the Western Balkans.
He pointed to North Macedonia as an example, stressing that the EU had promised a lot but had failed in that regard even though the country had changed its name on the integration path.
EU foreign policy chief Kallas stated that though enlargement was a merit-based process, geopolitics had final say in that. She also fiercely opposed U.S. Secretary of State Rubio’s comments, saying the EU was not falling apart.
The EU’s foreign policy chief added that there was a long waiting list for integration. According to her, once candidates do their homework, the EU cannot then say it is not ready.
Among the participants was also NATO Deputy Secretary General Shekerinska, who warned that Russia posed an existential threat to the Alliance, which was why Allies had to jointly increase the production of weapons and investments in defense capacities.