Azeski: Open the Balkans, close history, unite business
Skopje, 29 July 2021 (MIA) - No more confinement, corruption, grey economy and cheap workforces. We don’t want any more humiliation that we’re incapable of integrating ourselves in the international community and that we always need external help for our issues. We’re asking for the Balkans to be opened, for history to be closed, for business to be united and for there to be persistent implementation regardless of conservative resistance, says Branko Azeski, President of the Economic Chamber of North Macedonia, in a short interview with MIA ahead of the Economic Regional Cooperation Forum, held Thursday in Skopje.
Azeski says that it’s necessary for the region to be abstracted from the destructive “balkanization” process as soon as possible.
He says that the current political elites of Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia are willing to solve the economic problems, but businessmen should take advantage of this and take the next step to successful integration.
The Chamber’s president says that the prolonging of the negotiations with the EU is causing damages, but the biggest one is the uncertainty that’s practically killing the business. European leaders should approach this issue responsibly and professionally because the patience and willingness of businesses to accept EU values may be questioned, Azeski says in the interview.
Over 400 companies from North Macedonia, Serbia, Albania, BiH, Austria, Poland and Greece are expected to participate in the Economic Regional Cooperation Forum. Political leaders will be present. As a business community, what’s the message you’re going to send?
Our message will be loud and clear, it will demand for the Balkans to be opened, history to be closed, business to be united, and to persevere in implementation regardless of conservative resistance.
We want no further humiliation about being incapable of being integrated in the international community and that we always need someone from the outside to solve our problems.
The businesspeople are looking at the big picture, building bridges between the frustrated Balkan countries’ feudal concepts, and we’re sick of being closed off, of corruption, grey economy and cheap workforces.
The goal of all previous initiatives mentioned before the summit are the four freedoms – free flow of goods, services, people and capital, but implementation is the key issue. The latest Berlin Summit demonstrated this, when an agreement was not achieved in regards to the operationalization of the principles of these four freedoms, because there was always a certain degree of mind games, administrative blocks and delays.
The Berlin Process is a mini-Schengen. Plenty of initiatives and 20-year, 30-year-old issues. Will there be any sort of realization and when? Mutual certificate recognition, export-import documents, work permits, faster flow of goods, are some of the bitter questions for the countries of the Western Balkans that have not yet been resolved. What are your expectations from the Forum in this direction? Is it enough for things to just stay on paper?
During the time of digitalization, the most sophisticated solutions to track illegal activities, the private sector wants to eliminate border crossings and long lines of trucks that still exist only here.
We need concrete steps that will solve the infrastructure issue between our countries in a simple way, that will enable mutual recognition of certificates and other paperwork, mutually going on other markets, mutual products, eliminating the grey economy and corruption, reducing state costs and improving life standards.
What will happen if the agreements for changing the name of the “Mini-Schengen” initiative, as it was announced by Serbian President Vučić? Will that change anything substantial? Vučić has also announced signing agreements for setting up special “fast lanes” at border crossings for faster flow of citizens in the region.
To achieve this, we will need to abstract ourselves from the destructive process of balkanization, which various factors in the region have already been doing, and this is a term that has been adopted in professional terminology, meaning “the process of atomization of smaller units that are often hostile towards one another”. The Chamber Investment Forum, as an association of the economic chambers of the Western Balkans area, which started in 2015 within the Berlin Process, will play a key role.
There is always too much history on the Balkans and not enough common business, and new generations are demanding for this to change. The problem was the lack of political will to solve these issues.
The current political elites of Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia now have the political willpower to solve economic problems, and so I am calling the regional businessmen to take advantage of this moment and unite to take the necessary step towards successful integration.
The day before yesterday, you said something about regional cooperation. You said “we’re stronger together”, referring to the common market on the Western Balkans. What exactly are you referring to?
The concept of the four freedoms that every regional unification depends – free movement of people, goods, services and capital – with a strengthened cooperation in the areas of digitalization, investment, innovation and industry may be a driving power for new inspiration to improve competitiveness of the companies in the region after the pandemic.
Serbian PM Ana Brnabić said last Saturday that the biggest capital project in Serbia will be the railway section of Corridor 10, as well as that its value is currently being estimated on the Nish and Brestovac section to Preshevo and North Macedonia. Will there be any talk of this at the Forum, and what will this project mean for our country and business?
Serbian PM Ana Brnabić is completely right because infrastructural operations are a foundation for business development, and the Belgrade-Skopje-Thessaloniki railway is an infrastructural backbone for the economies of the Western Balkans. It’s of crucial significance to us because railway infrastructure was put aside over the latest period, even though it’s very important for business everywhere.
One of the general preconditions to motivate and deepen the trade-economic cooperation in the region is developed road and railway infrastructure such as the highway through the Grdelicka glen, and the Demir Kapija-Smokvica highway. The upcoming reconstruction of railways will enable a faster flow of people and goods.
The start of accession negotiations with the EU remains a sore spot for us. How badly does the prolonging of the date reflect on businesses? Can we talk of any damages? PM Zaev says all the time that it’s EU’s move because we did our task. Do you agree? Is there a message or a suggestion from the business community to the member states of the EU in regards to this issue?
The business sector’s attitude is this: if anyone asks what the alternative is to starting accession negotiations, it’s to fulfill EU’s standards regardless of the negotiations being dormant out of political or whatever other reasons. That means that no one is stopping us from implementing those standards. There are damages, but the biggest one of all is the uncertainty that’s practically killing business.
We have a message to the leaders of the EU, that they are the hope of a better tomorrow for all our companies and their employees, and as such, their responsibility towards the enlargement process is immense. They’ve made precedents that harmed small countries many times, so we would like to say it loud and clear that they need to approach this process with the highest degree of responsibility and professionalism because the patience and willingness of business to adapt to European values may be questions. We simply cannot keep feeling humiliated like this.
Mirjana Chakarova
Translated by Dragana Knezhevikj
Over 400 companies from North Macedonia, Serbia, Albania, BiH, Austria, Poland and Greece are expected to participate in the Economic Regional Cooperation Forum. Political leaders will be present. As a business community, what’s the message you’re going to send?
Our message will be loud and clear, it will demand for the Balkans to be opened, history to be closed, business to be united, and to persevere in implementation regardless of conservative resistance.
We want no further humiliation about being incapable of being integrated in the international community and that we always need someone from the outside to solve our problems.
The businesspeople are looking at the big picture, building bridges between the frustrated Balkan countries’ feudal concepts, and we’re sick of being closed off, of corruption, grey economy and cheap workforces.
The goal of all previous initiatives mentioned before the summit are the four freedoms – free flow of goods, services, people and capital, but implementation is the key issue. The latest Berlin Summit demonstrated this, when an agreement was not achieved in regards to the operationalization of the principles of these four freedoms, because there was always a certain degree of mind games, administrative blocks and delays.
The Berlin Process is a mini-Schengen. Plenty of initiatives and 20-year, 30-year-old issues. Will there be any sort of realization and when? Mutual certificate recognition, export-import documents, work permits, faster flow of goods, are some of the bitter questions for the countries of the Western Balkans that have not yet been resolved. What are your expectations from the Forum in this direction? Is it enough for things to just stay on paper?
During the time of digitalization, the most sophisticated solutions to track illegal activities, the private sector wants to eliminate border crossings and long lines of trucks that still exist only here.
We need concrete steps that will solve the infrastructure issue between our countries in a simple way, that will enable mutual recognition of certificates and other paperwork, mutually going on other markets, mutual products, eliminating the grey economy and corruption, reducing state costs and improving life standards.
What will happen if the agreements for changing the name of the “Mini-Schengen” initiative, as it was announced by Serbian President Vučić? Will that change anything substantial? Vučić has also announced signing agreements for setting up special “fast lanes” at border crossings for faster flow of citizens in the region.
To achieve this, we will need to abstract ourselves from the destructive process of balkanization, which various factors in the region have already been doing, and this is a term that has been adopted in professional terminology, meaning “the process of atomization of smaller units that are often hostile towards one another”. The Chamber Investment Forum, as an association of the economic chambers of the Western Balkans area, which started in 2015 within the Berlin Process, will play a key role.
There is always too much history on the Balkans and not enough common business, and new generations are demanding for this to change. The problem was the lack of political will to solve these issues.
The current political elites of Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia now have the political willpower to solve economic problems, and so I am calling the regional businessmen to take advantage of this moment and unite to take the necessary step towards successful integration.
The day before yesterday, you said something about regional cooperation. You said “we’re stronger together”, referring to the common market on the Western Balkans. What exactly are you referring to?
The concept of the four freedoms that every regional unification depends – free movement of people, goods, services and capital – with a strengthened cooperation in the areas of digitalization, investment, innovation and industry may be a driving power for new inspiration to improve competitiveness of the companies in the region after the pandemic.
Serbian PM Ana Brnabić said last Saturday that the biggest capital project in Serbia will be the railway section of Corridor 10, as well as that its value is currently being estimated on the Nish and Brestovac section to Preshevo and North Macedonia. Will there be any talk of this at the Forum, and what will this project mean for our country and business?
Serbian PM Ana Brnabić is completely right because infrastructural operations are a foundation for business development, and the Belgrade-Skopje-Thessaloniki railway is an infrastructural backbone for the economies of the Western Balkans. It’s of crucial significance to us because railway infrastructure was put aside over the latest period, even though it’s very important for business everywhere.
One of the general preconditions to motivate and deepen the trade-economic cooperation in the region is developed road and railway infrastructure such as the highway through the Grdelicka glen, and the Demir Kapija-Smokvica highway. The upcoming reconstruction of railways will enable a faster flow of people and goods.
The start of accession negotiations with the EU remains a sore spot for us. How badly does the prolonging of the date reflect on businesses? Can we talk of any damages? PM Zaev says all the time that it’s EU’s move because we did our task. Do you agree? Is there a message or a suggestion from the business community to the member states of the EU in regards to this issue?
The business sector’s attitude is this: if anyone asks what the alternative is to starting accession negotiations, it’s to fulfill EU’s standards regardless of the negotiations being dormant out of political or whatever other reasons. That means that no one is stopping us from implementing those standards. There are damages, but the biggest one of all is the uncertainty that’s practically killing business.
We have a message to the leaders of the EU, that they are the hope of a better tomorrow for all our companies and their employees, and as such, their responsibility towards the enlargement process is immense. They’ve made precedents that harmed small countries many times, so we would like to say it loud and clear that they need to approach this process with the highest degree of responsibility and professionalism because the patience and willingness of business to adapt to European values may be questions. We simply cannot keep feeling humiliated like this.
Mirjana Chakarova
Translated by Dragana Knezhevikj 
