Brussels, 19 September 2024 (MIA) - Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski, who is on an official visit to Brussels, together with the other Western Balkan leaders attended Thursday a working lunch hosted by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

PM Mickoski said in a Facebook post that the focus of the working lunch agenda was on the European Commission's Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. 

"I underlined that the region and the country are tired of being put aside, and of obstacles that are bilateral and not part of the objective criteria for joining the Union, also adding that greater efforts must be made to bring trust and credibility to the whole process," Mickoski notes in his post. 

The PM further notes that he has reiterated the country's commitment to achieving the strategic goal - membership in the Union, as well as progress based on real and sustainable criteria.

In a post on social media platform X earlier on Thursday, von der Leyen wrote that all six countries Western Balkan countries belong in Europe. 

“This is what we are working on. In parallel, we are bringing their economies and markets closer to ours with our €6 billion Growth Plan for the region,” von der Leyen wrote.

The meeting focused on mutual cooperation and the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, as part of which a Reform and Growth Facility has been established worth €6 billion, intended for reforms and projects related to the socio-economic sphere and fundamental rights. 

In addition to Mickoski, the working lunch was attended by the prime ministers of Albania – Edi Rama, Kosovo – Albin Kurti, Montenegro – Milojko Spajić, the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Borjana Krišto, and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić.

On Thursday afternoon, Mickoski is expected to meet with the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the European Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, as well as with the Director-General of the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR), Gert Jan Koopman.

On his visit to Brussels, Mickoski is being accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Timcho Mucunski, and the Minister of European Affairs, Orhan Murtezani. ad/nn/

Photo and video: EBS/fb