EU has no time to deal with Western Balkans now, analyst says

N1

European Union (EU) has no time to deal with the Western Balkans at the moment, analyst Slavo Kukic told N1, adding that the Union first has to set things in order in its own front yard.

Besides, he added, the French President explicitly said that there would be no EU enlargement so soon.

“If they were really interested in this part of the Western Balkans, they should have been more efficient instead of acting like an old maid and waiting for everything to be served on a plate,” said Kukic, a sociology professor at a local university in Bosnia.

“EU must first set things in order in its own front yard,” he stressed.

Commenting on the ongoing summit on the Western Balkans, taking place this week in the Polish city of Poznan, Kukic assessed that this would be yet another talk without special effect, despite the ambitions that the EU and its leaders might have.

The Poznan meeting is the sixth annual summit of the Western Balkan leaders, organised within the Berlin Process, which the German leadership initiated in 2014 to support the EU integration of the Western Balkan countries.

The meetings focus on social issues, connectivity, economy and various kinds of interregional cooperation.

But, Kukic does not believe the meeting will yield any results.

“I'm afraid there are too many problematic matters, which doesn't open door to optimism,” he said.