German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on Bulgaria on Saturday to abandon its veto on EU accession discussions with North Macedonia, saying the EU should not destroy the ambitions of Western Balkan countries for membership.
Scholz, who was in Sofia as part of a two-day trip of the area ahead of an EU-Western Balkans leaders’ summit on June 23, said he sensed the EU’s ‘new willingness’ to expand in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The war has heightened the necessity of attempting to bind the Western Balkans closer to the 27-member bloc in order to oppose Russian and Chinese influence. During his tour, the German chancellor has made the issue a foreign policy priority, positioning himself as a mediator.
‘I see opportunities for improvement,’ Scholz said at a joint news conference with Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov. ‘We’ll keep in touch in the following days.’
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