Slovenian President Visits Belgrade, Says There Is Political Will in Region to Preserve Peace

Borut Pahor (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV/MO)

Slovenian President Borut Pahor said on Sept. 3 that he was visiting Belgrade to consult with his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic about the existence of political will in the region to preserve the European outlook of the Western Balkans and stability.

"The war in Ukraine doesn't help peace and stability in the Western Balkans, but Vucic and I agree that regardless of all of the mistrust and bilateral issues there is enough political will in the Western Balkans to preserve peace and a European outlook," Pahor told reporters.

He said that he believed all regional leaders could agree on three central issues. "The first is speeding up Serbia's, Montenegro's, North Macedonia's and Albania's EU accession talks, granting Bosnia and Herzegovina candidate status and the EU meeting its obligation to liberalize visas," he said.

On the subject of Serbia's stance on European Union sanctions against Russia, Pahor said he believed Belgrade would give sanctions more consideration were there a sure European future for Belgrade, rather than just condemning the war in Ukraine. "I don't support the Serbian president's decision not to impose sanctions against Russia, but I can understand it. I think a greater, more resolute will in Brussels to admit Western Balkan countries into the EU more quickly would contribute to that decision," he said.