Remarks by EP President Roberta Metsola at the EU-Western Balkans Summit:

“Dear colleagues,

In the last decade, the EU has lost more Members than we have gained. For two decades, we have been unable to match our rhetoric with action when it comes to enlargement to the Western Balkans. But with the global geopolitical realities we are facing, we all need to move faster. Of course this can only be a merit-based approach with clear criteria, but there can be no substitute for real progress.

Look at Ukraine, Moldova or in Georgia. Illegal interference by Russia has made enlargement a geopolitical, strategic necessity. If Europe fails to act now, we will leave a void that others will gladly fill. It would be a strategic mistake not to seize the momentum now.

Enlargement has always been our most powerful geopolitical tool. But to get there, we need courage, political will, and reforms – on both sides.

The new staged accession process is already showing results. But we must go further….