High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission Federica Mogherini, Vice-President of the European Commission for Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič and European Commissioner for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn will represent the European Union at the Western Balkans Summit on August 27 in Vienna.
The summit will deal with the progress achieved since last year's Summit in Berlin and will aim to further develop cooperation between the six countries of the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia) on common challenges, especially migration. which is also one of the main topics of the Summit.
Regional cooperation and religious dialogue and the fight against extremism will also be discussed at the Summit. Parallel sessions of Prime Ministers, Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Ministers of Economy will be held at the Summit.
At the session of the President of the Government, the Prime Ministers will discuss the current economic situation in the region, education and professional development of young people and the policy of connection, and in this session Mogherini will participate.
"The Western Balkans region is facing many challenges, from the need for an urgent response to security and migration issues, to the need to solve economic and political difficulties in many countries. The Western Balkans Summit in Vienna gives us the opportunity to discuss not only the current challenges, but also about our common future," said Mogherini.
Together with the heads of diplomacy, Han will discuss current priorities in regional cooperation and challenges in the field of migration.
"We have witnessed remarkable progress in our joint connectivity agenda since the Berlin Summit last year and have now already identified concrete priority investment projects in the region, which could receive support from the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance," Han said.
Šefčovič and the ministers of economy will discuss the economic perspective of the region, the energy and traffic connections as well as professional training.
"Our Strategy for the Energy Union very clearly states that the Energy Union does not end at the borders of the EU. That is why we are not sparing our efforts to better connect the Western Balkans with our energy systems. This is the message I conveyed during my recent visit to Serbia, and it is my message at this Summit as well," Šefčovič stated.
1,5 million euros for humanitarian aid to refugees and migrants in the Western Balkans
In anticipation of the Summit, the European Commission will today provide an additional 1,5 million euros in humanitarian aid to help refugees and migrants in Serbia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
This aid is a form of support to humanitarian partners in the provision of basic services such as water, hygiene, health care, temporary accommodation, and protection of refugees and migrants, improvement of reception centers, as well as coordination and reporting on migration issues in the region.
Christos Stilianides, European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, said that the Western Balkans is facing an unprecedented number of transit refugees and migrants.
"The EU has stepped up humanitarian aid to urgently mitigate the consequences. This is the core of European solidarity," Stilianides said.
The European Commission previously awarded over EUR 90.000 in humanitarian aid to FYR Macedonia (July 31, 2015) and EUR 150.000 to Serbia (August 20, 2015) in response to this emergency.
The funds were sent directly to the national Red Crosses of the two countries. The EU's total humanitarian support for vulnerable refugees and migrants in Serbia and FYR Macedonia now amounts to 1,74 million euros.
In the European Agenda on Migration, the European Commission has established a comprehensive approach to solving the challenges of migration, in the short and long term. Cooperation and support to third countries, especially those located in our immediate environment, is a key element of this approach.
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