European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen begins a four-day visit to the Western Balkans on 23 October, reports BGNES.
Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo and Montenegro are on Von der Leyen's agenda. The meetings will focus on the region's progress towards the EU, as well as the 6 billion euro growth plan.
After visiting Tirana, Von der Leyen will travel to Skopje on Thursday, where she will meet with Prime Minister Christian Mickoski and President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova.
Von der Leyen and Mitkoski will hold a press conference, the EU delegation in Skopje confirmed.
After the visit in the Macedonian capital, Von der Leyen will leave for Bosnia and Herzegovina.
This year's visit to the Western Balkans comes at a time when enlargement is high on the EU's agenda, as confirmed by Von der Leyen herself at the Berlin Process Summit and the Bled Strategic Forum.
BGNES reminds that Albania started formal negotiations for membership of the bloc after it was separated from North Macedonia. The two countries were supposed to start negotiations together, but this did not take place due to the refusal of the regime of Christian Mitkoski to fulfil its obligations under the Negotiating Framework. I BGNES
