FM underscores importance of rule of law at conference on Western Balkans

Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis has described the European perspective of the Western Balkans as a matter of the utmost importance for Greek diplomacy.

Addressing an international conference organized by the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP) in cooperation with think tanks the Wilfried Martens Center for European Studies and the Hanns Seidel Foundation, on the European perspective of the Western Balkans, Gerapetritis recalled that 20 years ago Greece took the lead in adopting the Thessaloniki Agenda, which explicitly stated that “the future of the Western Balkans lies within the EU.”

“In these difficult times, a strong, resilient and inclusive EU is the cornerstone of peace and prosperity for European citizens,” he said, noting the need for a “reinvigorated enlargement process designed to integrate the Western Balkans – and Ukraine and Moldova – into the EU.”

Regarding the ongoing detention of the elected mayor of Himare, Fredi Beleri, in Albania, he insisted that “we cannot accept candidate countries that do not meet the membership criteria and in particular the basic principles of the European project, notably democracy and the rule of law.”