Balkan countries urge support from EU to counter effects of global crisis

BELGRADE, Serbia, Feb 3 – Countries of the troubled Balkans region urged the European Union to help them counter the effects of the global economic crisis.
Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia, Albania and Macedonia also asked for the EU’s support in their integration into the bloc and drop travel restrictions for their citizens.
Officials from the six nations gathered on Tuesday in Belgrade to discuss EU ties and regional cooperation.
On Tuesday the EU also reiterated “its unequivocal support to the European perspective of the Western Balkan countries. The future of the Balkans is within the European Union.
The European Council reaffirmed its full support for the European perspective of the Western Balkans, as set out in the Thessaloniki Agenda and the Salzburg
Declaration. It also said that the EU perspective remained essential for the stability,
reconciliation and the future of the Western Balkans.
The Balkans was shaken by ethnic wars in the 1990s, but countries in the volatile area have since sought to improve relations and work jointly toward EU membership.
The Commission’s overview of EU regionally relevant activities in the Western Balkans 2008/09 highlighted more than 90 concrete EU-supported activities and initiatives across a wide range of sectors implemented in 2008 and planned for 2009.
Important steps towards visa-free travel to the EU, increased number of scholarships for studies in the EU, more support to civil society, further regional cooperation and integration in areas such as transport, trade, disaster preparedness, support in addressing the impact of the international financial crisis and better coordination of the massive financial assistance provided by the EU and other international donors are some of the most important developments.
“I welcome the progress achieved in the countries of the Western Balkans during the past year. I am proud that the EU contributed with concrete means to this success. I know how much free travel or possibilities to study abroad matter in people’s every day life. I am looking forward to seeing further progress, as 2009 will be an important year for the EU integration of the Western Balkans,” commented Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn.