Ursula von der Leyen: Albania has made great efforts to secure EU membership

 

 North Macedonia and Albania have made great efforts to secure membership in the European Union. This is what future European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday, responding to France's decision, which stated that before Europe opens the negotiations for the two countries, EU countries must first reformat within them.

Von der Leyen was speaking after talks in Berlin with Chancellor Angela Merkel, who said it was "a matter of" extremely important European strategic interest "for both countries to continue to have a membership perspective".

“Albania and North Macedonia have made incredible efforts to achieve this. As long as it is not possible, I will do everything to develop joint projects that connect the Western Balkan countries closely with us. If we Europeans do not bring them closer to us, then this gap will be filled by others, whether China or Russia, Turkey or Saudi Arabia,” she said.

French President Emmanuel Macron vetoed further EU enlargement at a recent summit in Brussels, saying the accession process had to be reformed. The decision effectively destroyed both countries' hopes of making rapid progress on accession within the European Union's large family.