The European Union enlargement process is going in the right direction and has support from the highest political level, Croatian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlic-Radman said at the Europa-Forum Wachau on Friday.

Grlic-Radman participated in a panel discussion on European enlargement at the event in Göttweig Abbey.

At the beginning, the minister underscored the commitment of EU policies to the countries of the Western Balkans, adding that trust was key here, the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs said in a press release.

Therefore, the main question is how to revive confidence in the enlargement policy – both in the EU and in the Western Balkans. In order to have confidence in the process, it must be credible, and this is where the responsibility of the European Union lies, said the minister.

He said that last year the enlargement process gained momentum with the decisions on opening negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia and granting candidate status to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

He pointed out that outstanding issues from the past still strongly influenced the situation in Southeast Europe and that their resolution was crucial for the stability of the region.

Enlargement has been on autopilot for years, and the results of such an approach have been very disappointing – there has been almost no progress and the whole process has stalled. It has become clear that we have to do something in order to revive the process and make it more efficient, Grlic-Radman said at the panel.

We are now moving in the right direction with several important changes that include political engagement from the highest political level, a clear roadmap with an established strategy based on credibility and responsibility, a new methodology, strong pre-accession assistance and new initiatives with regard to stronger cooperation and partnership, accelerated or gradual integration and political dialogue. I hope that this will make the enlargement process more tangible for the countries and more relevant for their citizens, the minister said.

Participating at the panel in Austria together with the Croatian minister were also the ministers of foreign affairs of Austria, Alexander Schallenberg, the Czech Republic, Jan Lipavský, and Slovakia, Miroslav Wlachovský, who then signed a joint statement – the Göttweig Declaration of the Friends of the Western Balkans.

The declaration confirmed the commitment to the European future of that area, and the ministers called for accelerating the accession process and strengthening cooperation, the press release said.