Covering The EU Western Balkans Summit

May 16, 2018

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

SOFIA, Bulgaria - It is Day 1 of the much-anticipated European Union Western Balkans Summit hosted by Bulgaria, which currently holds the rotating European Council presidency. The Bulgarian government has made the issue of Western Balkan integration into the EU the priority of its presidency, and the two-day summit is supposed to be Sofia's crowning achievement as EU leader. However, critics say the summit will produce no breakthroughs in relations, and the EU is not ready to accept new members from the Western Balkans, which remains troubled by ethnic division and weak rule of law.

The Sofia summit is the first official gathering of EU and Western Balkan leaders in 15 years. The heads of state or government from all EU members, as well as the six Western Balkan states currently trying to join the union, are expected to be present. Top EU executives will also be in attendance.

There is some controversy over Kosovo's participation in the summit. For an explanation of the Kosovo controversy, watch a video report of mine from last month:

EU officials have announced the theme of the summit is connectivity. That basically means improving infrastructure links both between Western Balkan states and between the Western Balkans and the EU.

In advance of the event, EU officials have said Serbia and Montenegro are the two countries closest to joining the EU, and Brussels has set a target date of 2025 for their accession into the union. However, many stumbling blocks, including the Kosovo issue, remain on the path of Western Balkan integration into the EU. For background on where the various countries stand along the EU accession path, watch the following videocast I recorded at the end of my recent Western Balkan trip:

Lots more coverage to come from Sofia... Also stay tuned for unpublished interviews from the Western Balkans, which you will find at steemit.com/@freemanreporter