RESOLUTION BY THE EPP ENLARGED SUMMIT ON THE WESTERN BALKANS

"The European Perspective of the Western Balkans"

EPP Summit, Halkidiki, 19 June 2003

The signing of the accession treaties in Athens last April was a pivotal step for the European integration process. However, we should keep in mind that this is not the last one. Our presence here today in the heartland of the Balkans reminds us that an important part of our immediate neighborhood is still at an early stage of this process. The European People's Party has, in numerous occasions in the past, stressed the importance that it attaches to the European perspective of the Western Balkans.

The EPP adopted a focused and multi-dimensional policy on the region at a very early stage through its Western Balkan Democracy Initiative. We cultivated and established strong bonds with our like-minded parties there both at a bilateral and at a multilateral level. Likewise, we offered our support in a more tangible way by providing training, technical assistance and sharing our experience with them.

Most recently, this effort became even more concrete. We have now embraced in our political family the first observers from Albania, Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro. We hope that soon we will welcome like-minded partners also from Bosnia-Herzegovina and the FYROM. This way the EPP will spearhead the reform process of the political life in these countries and these parties will pioneer the European ideals in the region as the EPP parties are doing at a European level. The EPP initiative has recently been reinforced. Our South-East European Forum will from now on provide a new framework to our effort.

In this context, we welcome the enrichment of the Stabilization and Association Process with new elements inspired by the pre-accession strategy, as recently proposed by the Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament: The Western Balkans and European Integration. We hope that the proposed new mechanism will provide the appropriate framework for the preparation of the countries of the region for future integration stressing cooperation among them and with the EU in such areas as organized crime, corruption, human trafficking, refugee return, migration, trade, small and medium sized enterprises, energy and transport. Twinning and inter-parliamentary cooperation among the countries of the Western Balkans and with the EU are effective tools in this effort.

Particular emphasis will be put on cooperation based on good neighborliness, inviolability of borders, peaceful resolution of disputes and respect of democratic values and the rule of law. The main aim of our next rounds of enlargement should be to make war and the use of force unthinkable both among these countries, as well as to their neighbors. The contribution to regional stability and European "good neighborly relations" is a critical precondition for any accession country.

The EPP, on the kind invitation of its Vice-President and Chairman of the South East European Forum, Mr Kostas Karamanlis, will convene a special meeting of this Forum in early fall 2003 in Greece in order to discuss and coordinate its policy on these issues with our partners from the region. A clear message needs to be sent that the integration process is still underway and that South East Europe should profit from and follow the example of our 10 new partners.