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Germany to host Balkan leaders at 10th Berlin Process summit

October 14, 2024

First initiated by Germany, the Berlin Process aims to bring six Western Balkan states closer to the EU. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is also due to attend the meeting as head of the EU Council.

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Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks at an event
Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz will host the leaders of six Balkan statesImage: Uwe Koch/HMB Media/piccture alliance

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is set to host leaders of six Western Balkan states in Berlin on Monday for a summit aimed at building closer ties with the European Union.

European Union President Ursula von der Leyen, representatives from nine EU states and international organizations are also expected to take part.

The leaders will also celebrate the 10th anniversary of the platform, known as the Berlin Process.

What is the Berlin Process?

First held in 2014, the goal of the Berlin Process is to bring Serbia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia closer to the EU. 

Germany's Scholz is expected to focus on the progress made by the individual countries.

The Berlin Process for the Western Balkans explained

Of these, only Kosovo is not an official candidate for EU membership despite it submitting a formal application in 2022.

The Albanian-majority Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 with the backing of the West, following a 1998-1999 war.

While its independence is recognized by some 110 countries, five EU members — Greece, Spain, Romania, Slovakia and Cyprus — do not recognize Kosovo as an independent state, owing to fears about comparable independence movements within their own borders.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Obran is also traveling to Germany for the summit, spokesperson Zoltan Kovacs wrote on the social media platform X on Sunday.

He said Hungary had been invited to the meeting "due to its influence in the Western Balkans and its current presidency of the EU Council."

mk/zc (dpa, AFP)

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