Portugal backs EU accession for Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro

Portugal backs the EU accession bids of Albania, North Macedonia, and Montenegro, the office of outgoing Prime Minister António Costa stated on Monday following his three-country tour.

Costa, who will govern as acting prime minister until the snap elections in March, visited Tirana, Skopje and Podgorica on Sunday and Monday to reinforce his country’s commitment to EU enlargement. After meeting North Macedonia Prime Minister Dimitar Kovačevski on Monday, he had lunch with Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajić in Podgorica.

The visit to these three Western Balkan countries was aimed at “conveying Portugal’s support for their efforts to draw closer to the European Union, within the framework of the enlargement policy”, Costa’s communications office said in a statement.

Speaking about his North Macedonia trip, Costa wrote on X: “I was able to witness North Macedonia’s strong commitment to the EU accession process in a challenging geopolitical context. I told him that Portugal will continue to support North Macedonia on its European path.”

Meanwhile, at the EU level, there is currently talk of “double standards” regarding EU enlargement, with these three countries now waiting years since their enlargement process first started.

While Croatia became the first of seven Western Balkan countries to join the EU in 2013, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Serbia are still only candidate countries while Kosovo is not even a potential candidate despite applying in 2022.

Meanwhile, negotiations and accession talks have been opened with Montenegro and Serbia. Albania and North Macedonia were granted the opening of accession talks in July 2022, with Tirana’s negotiations set to start in late December, while Skopje remains waiting over a veto from Bulgaria.

An EU-Balkan summit will be held in Brussels on 13 December.

Costa’s visit also comes just days before a crucial European Council meeting in Brussels on 14-15 December, where EU leaders will discuss opening formal accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova.

(André Campos Ferrão, edited by Pedro Sousa Carvalho | Lusa.pt)