The European Commission, Council and Parliament cannot make promises about enlargement, as next year, many of them will no longer be there, and it will not be their decision to take, said Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama in an interview.
Speaking just days before Tirana hosts the Berlin Summit, Rama gave an interview on the prospects of the summit, EU enlargement and the ongoing conflict between Kosovo and Serbia.
Pressed on the recent comments of European Council President Charles Michel, who said the following enlargement process should occur by 2030, Rama was unconvinced.
He said it is necessary to be frank and realistic and understand that all those in decision-making positions in the Council, Parliament and Commission will not be there next year.
“Elections are based on changes. Michel is a fantastic president, but we will not be there next year. The Commission, as it is, will not be there. It is not a decision these people can take.”
He added that he has learned the hard way during his three mandates that deadlines from the European Union are not something to pin hopes to. He explained that they have often been given deadlines for them simply to be postponed repeatedly.
As for France and Germany’s proposal to enlarge the EU through a series of groups of membership types, Rama said he is in favour of it.
He said it is a good way to start structuring this big European political community in several spaces, including security, climate change, currency, and visa-free travel.
“It is like entering a home from the courtyard to the living room. There may be bigger, larger and more private rooms in the house; they may have big, large offices, but you are all under the same roof and not separate.”
Another question was how he feels about the possible opening of accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova at the end of the year and whether any potential leapfrogging in the process would bother him.
“I do not have any problem with Ukraine and Moldova getting candidate status and advancing…it is good for them to have this confidence boost and boost of support. But I don’t see in any shape or form that they can join before us,” he said.
“It is not going to happen.”
On the topic of Monday’s Berlin Summit and whether he is worried that current crises may overshadow the event, Rama said the programme was drafted long ago and, as such, does not give much leeway for other topics to be put on the agenda.
He did say, however, that the leader’s lunch will be a chance for bilateral meetings to take place.
Asked if there may be a meeting between the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia, Rama said that it is not currently planned, but “everything can happen.”
“If there is a space or if the leaders of Germany and France that will be here will want to talk to them because they are also the co-authors of the French-German plan, which is on the table. Maybe it can happen, but I don’t really see it coming,” he said.
But as the EU-backed dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia is challenged from all angles amid limited results, accusations of bias, and the terrorist attack in north Kosovo on 24 September, some have come forward with ideas of new approaches.
Rama previously suggested that the EU-backed dialogue process be elevated to more of a conference with input from others in the region.
When asked to clarify what this would entail, he said the idea of the conference is simply to bring what is already happening in the current dialogue and add in the participation of the “big shots” with the same agenda and goal.
“I don’t see where is the difference- what is happening already with this never-ending dialogue- two men with very little progress in Brussels, or totally another level with the participation of the big shots,” Rama explained.
In a recent interview, Kosovo’s Foreign Minister Donika Gervalla Schwartz called Rama’s idea “dangerous” and said it would take Kosovo back to the 2000s before its independence was established.
When questioned on this public rebuff, Rama said, “This is the idea. What is the terrible part of it? I do not get it.”
As for the “very little progress” made by Brussels so far, Rama was clear that it is not just about results but that “things are not getting better…things are getting more tense, more dangerous.”
Rama continued that perhaps Serbia is more interested in keeping things in a sort of “frozen conflict” but that Kosovo should be the one to push things forward.
“The plan on the table is the best deal that could happen for Kosovo because this is de facto recognition,” he said, mentioning the so-called ‘Franco-German’ plan.
Rama said he does not understand why Kosovo is not grabbing the opportunity with both hands to move forward with the plan. “Why don’t you push for it, why are you not the one that screams to everyone; let’s do it, let’s do it?” he said.
After all, he said, Serbia lost the war and “history shows that who has lost the war is not interested in peace as much as those who have won the war.”
As for whether he thinks Serbia had a hand in, or knew about the September attack, Rama said, “What is true is that everyone, me included, has doubts. That is why a full investigation is needed,” Rama said.
He added that President Aleksander Vucic should have condemned the attack from the first day, condemned the killing of a policeman and started a thorough investigation.
“If we do not have an investigation, everything will be jeopardised, and the process will be undermined because every side will speculate on what happened. No, put the facts on the table. This is how it works.”
(Alice Taylor | Euractiv.com)
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