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For a strong EU capable of action – Foreign Minister Wadephul is travelling to Montenegro, Italy, the Vatican and Slovenia
Cityscape of Podgorica, Montenegro © imageBROKER.com
Foreign Minister Wadephul’s trip will focus on EU enlargement to include the countries of the Western Balkans. It is in our interest to forge closer ties with these countries – also against the backdrop of increasing Russian influence.
Today Foreign Minister Wadephul is embarking on a two-day trip to Montenegro, Italy, the Vatican and Slovenia. The trip will focus on EU enlargement to include the countries of the Western Balkans and on the question of how we can make the EU more competitive and better able to face the future.
In Montenegro, the first stop on the trip, Foreign Minister Wadephul will attend the Foreign Ministers Meeting of the Berlin Process. This process was launched by Germany in 2014 to bring the six Western Balkan states – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia – closer to the EU. Germany remains the patron of the Berlin Process, with the meetings this year being hosted by Montenegro.
Prior to his departure, Foreign Minister Wadephul said:
EU enlargement in the Western Balkans is an acid test for Europe. It will determine what influence the EU will have in the coming decades. Only by offering the Western Balkan states a credible EU perspective and forging closer ties with them can we secure long-term geopolitical leverage.
Before joining the EU, the countries of the Western Balkans must meet numerous accession criteria. So there is no way round reforms, for instance on the rule of law, in the fight against corruption and organised crime or in making a reckoning with the past. Germany is committed to ensuring that progress on reforms is taken into account in the accession process – because bringing the countries of the Western Balkans close to us is also in our own security interest.
Italy – a close partner in EU enlargement
Germany and Italy enjoy close bilateral relations that have at the same time been based on a shared vision for Europe since the Treaties of Rome were signed almost 70 years ago. Our countries are both founding members of the EU and are working together today to make the EU fit for the future. As Europe’s biggest industrial nations, Italy and Germany share many interests, particularly when it comes to strengthening Europe’s competitiveness.
This year Italy and Germany are celebrating 75 years of diplomatic relations. To mark the occasion, Foreign Minister Wadephul and his Italian colleague Antonio Tajani will plant the first of 75 trees in the garden of the residence of the German Ambassador in Rome.
Germany and Italy are also agreed on driving forward EU enlargement in the Western Balkans, which are in Italy’s immediate vicinity.
Foreign Minister Wadephul commented:
With Italy, we have an important EU partner at our side when it comes to firmly anchoring the Western Balkans in the EU. During my visit to Rome tomorrow, I will discuss with my colleague Antonio Tajani what we can do to bring the Western Balkan states closer to the EU even faster – and how we as the EU in Brussels must position ourselves to tackle this task institutionally.
Vatican – dialogue with the Holy See
Another key part of the programme in Rome is the dialogue with the Holy See, which is an integral and important element of German foreign policy. Germany and the Holy See are together committed to peace and human rights, including freedom of religion.
In the Vatican, Foreign Minister Wadephul will meet Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s “head of government” and “foreign minister” respectively. Their talks will concentrate on global crises and challenges, in particular the humanitarian repercussions of the war in Ukraine.
Slovenia – first official visit to Ljubljana
The final stage of the Foreign Minister’s trip will take him to Slovenia. The country between the Alps and the Adriatic forms a bridge between Central Europe and the Western Balkans. It was also the first of the successor states to the former Yugoslavia to accede to the EU, in 2004. Paying his first official visit to Ljubljana, Foreign Minister Wadephul will discuss EU enlargement with his Slovenian counterpart Tone Kajzer and Prime Minister Janez Janša.
Foreign Minister Wadephul said:
As a country that still remembers the often arduous accession process from its own experience and that, at the same time, has become a driving force for European cohesion during its more than 20 years of EU membership, Slovenia serves as a role model for EU accession candidates.
They will also talk about Europe’s competitiveness and the EU reforms needed to strengthen its capacity for external action.