At the annual Vienna Congress, one of the keynote speakers was Enver Hoxhaj, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kosovo.
As a member of the Congress Board, Hoxhaj emphasized the urgent need for the integration of Western Balkan countries into the European Union.
“Europe cannot have a full future without integrating the countries of the Western Balkans,” Hoxhaj said during his speech.
He added, “Over the past 20 years, the EU’s bureaucratic approach, where reforms, standards, and conditionalities have not produced the expected results, has left the region in a difficult situation: economically integrated, politically excluded, and in terms of security dependent on the EU and NATO.”
Hoxhaj stressed that it is time for the EU to take concrete steps toward the accession of Western Balkan countries, including Kosovo.
“This is in the interest of the EU and in the interest of our countries,” he said.
This year’s Vienna Congress brought together politicians, scholars, and Nobel laureates from Europe and beyond, becoming an important platform for discussions on the future of the continent.
