Kocijancic: Mogherini Regularly Reports to EU Members about Dialogue
The EU high representative regularly reports in person to the EU member states about the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, at sessions of the Union's Council of Ministers, and her team provides information about the course of the dialogue to the representatives of EU members within the various working groups of the EU Council.
Maja Kocijancic, the spokesperson of Federica Mogherini, said this to BETA, commenting on the claims in the media concerning several EU members having requested to be directly included in the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue, since they were dissatisfied with the lack of information, especially about creating the legally binding agreement on the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina.
Kocijancic stressed that The European External Action Service (EEAS), of which Mogherini is chief, did not comment on media reports. She reiterated that good will services in the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue were provided by High Representative Federica Mogherini.
The sources in the EEAS did not wish to say whether they had confirmation of the claims that the U.S. had presented a proposal with four key principles for the legally binding agreement between Belgrade and Pristina.
Certain media have reported that some EU members were dissatisfied for having been completely excluded from the dialogue... which is entering a crucial phase and that a request would be forwarded at the meeting of EU leaders at the end of June, that the conclusions encompass the obligation for EU members to be directly included in the dialogue, which Spain and members of the Visegrad Group allegedly demanded.
Sources in the EU told BETA that the Union's further strategy regarding the admission of Western Balkan countries would be discussed during the summit of the European 28 in June, but that, also because of the resistance of political forces and of the public in several Union members, there were currently various stands about whether this complex and long process should be labeled as "accession to membership."
France, Germany, Holland and some other members believe that the EU itself first has to be reorganized, especially after the populist forces have assumed power in Italy, in order to see how to strengthen the crucially important euro zone, and that only then shall the association of some Western Balkan countries be considered, providing that they each fulfill all the EU's conditions.
