European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen concluded a multi-day visit to the Western Balkans, reiterating the EU\u2019s commitment to the region\u2019s European path and to the \u20ac6 billion Growth Plan. In Tirana, she addressed the EU\u2013Western Balkans Investment Forum, noting concrete steps toward the EU Single Market and welcoming the inclusion of Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia in SEPA, which makes euro transfers faster and cheaper for citizens and businesses. In Montenegro, she commended progress on rule-of-law and the digital transition, confirming an initial \u20ac8 million disbursement under the Reform and Growth Facility\u2014an entry point to a package exceeding \u20ac380 million, contingent on continued reforms.<\/p>\n
Her stops in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Kosovo carried clear political signals alongside the economic track. In Sarajevo, she visited the Srebrenica Memorial and met state leaders, underlining that remembrance and accountability are integral to Europe\u2019s values and that sustained reforms remain essential as the country advances on its EU course. In Belgrade, she urged accelerated work on justice reforms and closer alignment with EU foreign policy, alongside tangible progress in the EU-facilitated Dialogue with Kosovo\u2014emphasising that reform delivery unlocks access, investment and new opportunities under the Growth Plan. In Pristina, she reaffirmed the EU\u2019s long-term commitment to Kosovo\u2019s European perspective, encouraging de-escalation, institution-building and steady implementation of agreed steps so the country can fully benefit from the Plan\u2019s instruments and connectivity measures.<\/p>\n
In Skopje, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reiterated that the \u201cnext and only step\u201d before opening accession negotiations is the agreed constitutional change\u2014\u201cthe ball is in your court. The EU is ready,\u201d she posted after meetings with the government. She paired the political message with concrete deliverables under the Growth Plan: an AI Factory antenna to be opened in Skopje to plug North Macedonia\u2019s innovators into EuroHPC-powered AI resources; inclusion in the Single Euro Payments Area to make euro transfers faster and cheaper; and a new disbursement of \u20ac16 million linked to reforms already delivered.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe future of the Western Balkans is within our Union. And it is up to all of us to make it happen.\u201d Von der Leyen\u2019s tour underlined that message with concrete steps already in motion, from Single Market\u2013linked reforms and new investment pipelines in clean energy, innovation and sustainable tourism to people-to-people measures that reduce everyday costs and travel barriers, with a clear throughline that credible reforms and dialogue unlock access, funding and opportunities as the region moves closer to the European Union.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen concluded a multi-day visit to the Western Balkans, reiterating the EU\u2019s commitment to the region\u2019s European path and <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2539240,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"country-for-news":[],"class_list":["post-2539237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n