Diplomats: Common European Future Only Solution for Region's Past Problems

Western Balkans leaders in Brussels (BETAPHOTO/European Council)

A common European future is the only solution for the Western Balkans' problems from the past that have not been overcome, and Serbia is expected to truly respect the EU's values in the time of a new war in Europe, it was stated at the opening of the conference on cooperation and the region's European path, in Belgrade on June 9.

"Reconciliation and cooperation might sound paradoxically in the time when war returns to our continent with Russia's aggression on Ukraine, but this conflict, on our doorstep, is fueling tension and polarization on our continent," stated the French ambassador to Serbia, Pierre Cochard. In his address at the opening of the conference titled "Towards the common European future of the Balkans: Historic and contemporary views of regional cooperation," Cochard said that polarization was also observed among the people of Serbia, some of whom are returning to "the 1990s way of thinking" and that he hoped that would be overcome.

"The glorification of war criminals is a phenomenon that is still present in this region and it is necessary to overcome the divisions that have marked the history of the Balkans. There is one solution standing before the Balkans and Europe, and that is the common European future – the only thing that provides an answer to the region's problems and gives an innovative response for overcoming the past," the EU's ambassador to Serbia, Emanuele Giaufret, stated at the gathering.

The head of the Council of Europe's mission in Belgrade, Tobias Flessenkemper, has stated that, in the spirit of the best possible organization of the European continent, there was room for all to join the multilateral framework. "There is room for everyone to join the multilateral framework, which is very beneficial for the region and for dealing with the tough issues that have not yet been closed," Flessenkemper has said.