Common Market Soon for Serbia, N. Macedonia, Albania

Photo: North Macedonia Government

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Jan. 22 that, in the immediate future, he expects the signing of two protocols essential to Tirana, Skopje and Belgrade implementing their agreement on free access to the labor market as of March 1.

“We’ve discussed the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans with American and European representatives. We’ve also discussed a common European market and [our] participation in it. Those green lines for our trucks, [allowing them] to cross EU state borders are most important to us – the strengthening of our commerce and industrial production. We should do the same regionally,” Vucic told the press in Skopje.

Western Balkan leaders and EU representatives are meeting in Skopje on Jan. 22 to discuss the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, which envisages EUR6 billion in financial aid and lines of credit aimed at accelerating the region’s social and economic integration with the EU.

Aside from Vucic, the conference is being attended by the prime ministers of Albania, Montenegro and Kosovo – Edi Rama, Milojko Spajic and Albin Kurti respectively – as well as by Bosnian and Herzegovinian Finance Minister Srdjan Amidzic, NEAR Director-General Gert Jan Koopman and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James O’Brien.

Ahead of the meeting, Rama stated that the countries of the Western Balkans should put their citizens’ needs first and set aside politics and history so as to take advantage of the opportunity to join the European Union’s single market.