Ioannis Armakolas, Head of the South-East Europe Programme of ELIAMEP, participated in the international conference “Preparing for Enlargement: The EU and Western Balkans’ Contributions” in Rome, which was organized by Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) and the Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBCT), with the support, assistance, and sponsorship of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and under the strategic partnership of the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation.
The aim of the conference was to enhance the understanding of the role and contribution of the Western Balkans in the wider EU regional integration system, focusing on three main groups of issues:
– How the Western Balkan countries could benefit most from increased participation in the European single market, in the light of the measures foreseen in the New Growth Plan for the Western Balkans proposed by the European Commission,
– How the Western Balkans contribute to the economic and geopolitical security of the EU, taking into account the plan launched by the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU to achieve an “open autonomy strategy”,
– A debate on the future of the EU, its institutions and policies.
Ioannis Armakolas spoke in the second panel which focused on strengthening European economic and geopolitical security. The panel examined how the Western Balkans contribute to the EU’s economic and geopolitical security, and how this role could be increased in several specific areas, such as energy, critical raw materials and foreign direct investment control mechanisms. In addition, it took into account the plan promoted by the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council to achieve an “open autonomy strategy” by increasing the EU’s resilience and competitiveness by 2030.
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