J. Joksimović at the panel: The EU should hold substantive discussions with the Western Balkans, and not about the Western Balkans

February 16 2020 | Munich

J. Joksimović at the panel: The EU should hold substantive discussions with the Western Balkans, and not about the Western Balkans

The Munich Security Conference closing panel on the future of the European Union has been held today, where Minister of European Integration Jadranka Joksimović has addressed the participants saying that it is much more important for the EU to hold substantive discussions with the Western Balkans, and not about the Western Balkans.

The closing panel was attended by Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Luigi Di Maio, European Commission Vice-President and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs Jacek Czaputowicz, French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian, and UK Prime Minister's National Security Adviser Mark Philip Sedwill.

After the participants finished their presentations, Minister Joksimović provided answers to some questions and asked questions herself, and on the occasion stressed that preserving the stability of the Western Balkans was the stability of the EU itself.

Stating that the Brussels Agreement was also signed by the then High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Catherine Ashton, Joksimović has said that the said Agreement has not yet been implemented because Pristina has not formed the Community of Serb Municipalities, and the EU has not provided for credible implementation of the agreed. 

Joksimović has stressed that, if the EU wants to strengthen itself and become a more powerful geopolitical player, which was one of the main topics of the Conference, it needs to more strongly use its diplomatic power, which none of the other major global actors possess.
She has also added that the enlargement policy is one of the strongest instruments of diplomatic power and restoration of EU strategic sovereignty. 

"If we want a more stable region and a credible future, we must respect the existing documents and agreements, because success and a sustainable state of peace established within the EU rest upon them," Joksimović has said.
Source: Tanjug