Statement by President von der Leyen at the Berlin Process Summit
Good afternoon everyone. We had a very good meeting. Thank you very much for hosting this meeting here and inviting me, dear Chancellor, lieber Olaf. I was glad to be here to mark the tenth anniversary of the Berlin Process.
First, it was the occasion to look back on a decade of progress with our Western Balkan partners. Because the Berlin Process has always been the advocate, the architect and the anchor of a solid bond between us. And we thank you for that. A lot has changed in ten years, of course. Times of conflicts, wars and turmoil have brought new awareness inside the European Union. The awareness that a larger Union is also a stronger Union. And that it was our responsibility to bring aspiring members closer to us. This is why we have been extending to the Western Balkans the very same solidarity measures that we have taken inside our Union. One example is the energy crisis. We have helped Western Balkan households to cope with high energy costs through our Energy Support Package of EUR 1 billion. We are now building energy infrastructure to make the Western Balkans more energy independent, with an investment plan of EUR 30 billion. Another example is our cooperation on civil protection. We all have fought the wildfires of this summer and the recent floods in Bosnia and Herzegovina, side by side. And all this practical cooperation has run in parallel with progress on the European path.
This brings me to my second point. It was not the case ten years ago, but today enlargement is very much at the top of our agenda. When we are looking towards the future we are looking at a future where all six Western Balkan partners are part of our European Union. To get there, I believe we must draw on the lessons of the 2004 enlargement. The first precondition is alignment with our core European values: the respect for democracy and the rule of law. And the second precondition is early economic integration. This is why the Berlin Process plays a key role. It has always been the driving force behind regional economic integration. And so, the Berlin Process became the promoter of the Western Balkan Six Common Regional Market. It is essential that this Common Regional Market functions smoothly. Because it allows the Western Balkan companies to trade, to innovate and to create good jobs. And because it brings the region closer to us and their economies, closer to our Single Market.
So I very much welcome the agreement found last week at CEFTA level. I welcome in particular that restrictions on exports from Serbia to Kosovo will be lifted. I congratulate both sides on showing such political will. And I congratulate you, Olaf, for Germany’s skilful mediation efforts. Because this is a very concrete step towards normalisation. And I also welcome today’s signature of the new action plan for the Common Regional Market. The better the Common Regional Market functions, the better the Western Balkan’s economies can be – step by step – integrated in our European Single Market.
This is my third and last point. We needed a bridge between the Common Regional Market and the European Single Market. And this bridge is our Growth Plan for the Western Balkans – EUR 6 billion of investment. It is no coincidence that I chose to launch the Growth Plan at last year’s Berlin Process Summit in Tirana. The reason is simple: The Growth Plan and the Berlin Process are interwoven. With the Growth Plan we kind of open the door to specific sectors of the Single Market. To use this opening, the Western Balkans need to adopt relevant reforms to have a level playing field. And these reforms are in return supported by EU investments in each country. And progress is tangible. We asked our partners to develop their own Reform Agenda under the Growth Plan. Today I am pleased to report that five out of six reform agendas will be adopted this week. This means that payments from the Growth Plan can start flowing before the end of the year. This would never have been possible without the Berlin Process. So the hard work of the Berlin Process is a success story. It is a windy road. But we are moving forward. Many thanks again for hosting the Berlin Process here today.
