The Dilemmas Facing Europe and the Prospects of the Western Balkans

Bulgaria was among the EU member states that actively engaged in the process of reviewing the EU's Global Strategy for a Common Foreign Policy, insisting that the Western Balkans be given their place among the EU's priority regions, as well as become part of the Community policies that directly affect them, such as energy and security.

The refugee pressure from North Africa and the Middle East is a European problem for which only European-wide policies would provide a solution. Recent months have demonstrated that this solution runs through support for neighbours, such as the Western Balkans, where the EU is a key partner. The refugee flow through the Balkans has once again exposed institutional instabilities, gaps in social cohesion and economic problems in these countries, and brought to mind simmering ethnic conflicts and strained neighbourly relations.

In order to integrate the Western Balkan countries into these processes, the EU must make new efforts to engage and reform them. This was also evident from the meeting of EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini with analysts from South-East Europe in July 2015 in Sofia. Including the Balkan countries in various EU policies and decision-making processes that directly affect them is one possible solution to this problem.

With the participation of

Daniel Mitov, Minister of Foreign Affairs

Francisco de Borja Lasheras, Associate Director of ECFR Madrid

Moderated by Vessela Tcherneva, Director of ECFR Sofia