I guess someone has to explain him that Italy, Greece and Hungary are part of Schengen Area
Open Balkan is good for Western Balkan countries that they will not join EU soon but for the rest I don’t consider it very attractive. Even Montenegro prefers not to join as hopes for EU membership sooner than the rest
I get their anguish since EU enlargement is a thing of the past, and they were left outside to dry but that initiative is incompatible with EU membership so no member state can follow.
Generally speaking EEC/EU used to be dynamic, evolving, ever-changing process towards enlargement and greater integration of the members and their surroundings states. All that died around 2005, when the European constitution was rejected by the French/Dutch and Merkel came to power without any semblance of vision for a deeper/larger EU. Unless something changes in the coming decades in the dynamics, we will witness a slow decline that will either lead to disintegration (at worst) or the downgrade of the union into a common market/customs Union. Western balkans could join the latter.
Go for it, little brothers!
I know it’s not serious and probably symbolic, but it’s a bit strange that he did not mention Romania and Bulgaria at all. It is called “Open Balkan” after all. Why Italy and Hungary, but not Romania and/or Bulgaria?
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I guess someone has to explain him that Italy, Greece and Hungary are part of Schengen Area
Open Balkan is good for Western Balkan countries that they will not join EU soon but for the rest I don’t consider it very attractive. Even Montenegro prefers not to join as hopes for EU membership sooner than the rest
I get their anguish since EU enlargement is a thing of the past, and they were left outside to dry but that initiative is incompatible with EU membership so no member state can follow.
Generally speaking EEC/EU used to be dynamic, evolving, ever-changing process towards enlargement and greater integration of the members and their surroundings states. All that died around 2005, when the European constitution was rejected by the French/Dutch and Merkel came to power without any semblance of vision for a deeper/larger EU. Unless something changes in the coming decades in the dynamics, we will witness a slow decline that will either lead to disintegration (at worst) or the downgrade of the union into a common market/customs Union. Western balkans could join the latter.
Go for it, little brothers!
I know it’s not serious and probably symbolic, but it’s a bit strange that he did not mention Romania and Bulgaria at all. It is called “Open Balkan” after all. Why Italy and Hungary, but not Romania and/or Bulgaria?