Spain fully backs Western Balkan integration into EU

By LLAZAR SEMINI
Associated Press

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has said the Western Balkans are an integral part of the European Union, repeating his country’s full support of the region’s integration into the 27-member bloc. Sanchez was in Tirana on Monday on his last leg of the Western Balkan trip that earlier took him to Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and North Macedonia. EU officials have recently sought to encourage governments in the region to move on with reforms amid concerns over Russia’s efforts to boost its influence in the Balkans. Western Balkan countries are at different stages of EU integration. Sanchez said that the reforms in these countries will “improve the life of the citizens.” Sanchez also said the war in Ukraine showed the EU’s strength.