PM Tsipras: Prespes Agreement offers new prospects to entire Balkan region
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, during joint statements on Friday with the prime ministers of Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania in Varna after a quadrilateral summit, noted that conditions in the Balkans were now very different to those that existed four years ago.
He particularly singled out the summer of 2017, which he said had been a difficult time for the region, with serious political crises taking place in Albania and Skopje.
Tsipras also referred to the successful Bulgarian EU presidency, adding that there was an opportunity to discuss the imminent Romanian EU presidency, "which we hope it will lead us to a new period for the European prospects of the western Balkans."
"Today we had the opportunity to point out the importance we attach to the course of all southeastern European countries toward EU ]but particularly that of Serbia, which is at the forefront among the candidate countries," said Tsipras.
He also underlined the special symbolism of the fact that three EU countries that are in the Balkans are with Serbia in this initiative.
The Prespes Agreement marks the resolution of a long-standing problem and offers a new prospect for the whole region, Tsipras said in his statements.
The agreement will have multiple benefits for prosperity and joint economic growth in southeastern Europe, which can also contribute to an upgrading of northern Greece and especially of Macedonia, converting it into an important regional hub for energy, shipping, transport and transit activities.
Source: amna-mpa
