The German EU Council Presidency 2020 will prioritize having the first intergovernmental conference on EU accession with North Macedonia within this year. It will also work for the same “possible” outcome with Albania.
On Wednesday, Chancellor Angela Merkel presented the German EU Council Presidency 2020 priorities and program before the European Parliament.
Merkel listed the German EU Council Presidency’s three priorities, the first of which was the following:
“During our presidency, we should do everything we can to make progress in three other foreign policy areas; Firstly, at the accession conference, at least with North Macedonia, possibly also Albania – an important step on the way to giving the countries of the Western Balkans an accession perspective.”
Albania is expected to meet a number of conditions before practically starting EU accession talks in the first intergovernmental conference. North Macedonia was given no conditions.
German presidency’s second and third priorities related EU relations with Africa and China.
