The High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the European Union, Kaja Kallas, will visit several countries in the Western Balkans from April 7 to 9.
On her first visit to the region as the head of European diplomacy, Kallas will stay in Montenegro, Albania, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The EU announced that on the first day of her tour, in Montenegro, the senior European official will meet with President Jakov Milatović and Prime Minister Milojko Spajić. She will also meet with civil society representatives.
Montenegro is the country in the region that has advanced the most on its path to EU membership.
On April 8, in Albania, Kallas will have meetings with President Bajram Begaj and Prime Minister Edi Rama. She will also hold a joint press conference with the latter.
In Albania, the EU’s foreign policy chief will also meet with the Minister for Europe and European Affairs, Igli Hasani, and the Minister of Defense, Pirro Vengu.
“She will participate in the first meeting of the EU-Albania Security and Defense Dialogue with Ministers Hasani and Vengu. Additionally, Kallas will attend the signing ceremony of the grant agreement by the European Investment Bank and the loan agreements for the Durrës-Rrogozhinë railway,” the statement said.
On the final stop of her tour in the Western Balkans, Kallas will stay in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where she will meet with the leaders of the tripartite Presidency, the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia, as well as representatives of the European force in Bosnia, EUFOR.
During the confirmation hearings for her position as the head of EU diplomacy, Kallas promised to work to make the EU enlargement a reality.
The six countries of the Western Balkans – except for Kosovo – as well as Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, and Turkey are candidates for EU membership.
Kosovo has applied for membership in the European bloc, but its application has not yet been considered.
