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North Macedonia, Albania Disappointed As EU Blocks Membership Talks

By RFE/RL October 18, 2019

A handful of European Union countries led by France have again blocked membership talks for North Macedonia and Albania.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called the failure of the 28 leaders meeting in Brussels on October 18 to agree to start formal accession negotiations with Skopje and Tirana "a historic error."

"It's not a failure, it's a mistake. I feel really embarrassed," EU Council President Donald Tusk added at a news conference after the summit.

The European Commission has said North Macedonia and Albania have done enough to begin accession talks, and EU member states had pledged that a firm decision on the two countries' future would be taken "no later than October."

Apart from France, all the other EU members agree that North Macedonia has made enough progress on reforms -- including changing its name from Macedonia to appease Greece -- to start talks.

Albania had less support, with the Netherlands and Denmark joining France in voicing reservations about its efforts against corruption and organized crime.

Speaking after the Brussels summit, French President Emmanuel Macron said he won't allow any new countries into the bloc until its enlargement procedures have been improved.

Opening membership talks with Skopje while closing the door to Tirana would have been a major political mistake, he added.

After returning from Brussels on October 17, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama regretted the deadlock, saying it was " linked with an open confrontation within the EU itself."

"The process of European integration will continue. Not because Paris, Berlin, Brussels or all of them are asking for it, but because it is needed to turn our country into a European, functional country," Rama said on a talk show.

In a televised address, North Macedonia's President Stevo Pendarovski said it was "not a time for disappointment and apathy, but a time for national unity."

"I'm convinced that if we are working together, we will succeed," he added.

In the streets of Skopje, frustration and disappointment prevailed.

Rume Risteski, a resident of Skopje, said the deadlock shows that "the Europeans lie," leading to skepticism toward the EU.

With reporting by Reuters, AFP, AP, and RFE/RL's Balkan Service

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/eu-leaders- brussels-membership-albania- north-macedonia/30222770.html

Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.