Prime Ministers Jansa and Karamanlis focus on the Western Balkans

Ljubljana, 5 February

The Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic, Mr Kostas Karamanlis, paid a working visit to Slovenia this evening at the invitation of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia and President of the European Council, Mr Janez Jansa. The meeting, the third of its kind in the past year, was mainly devoted to an exchange of views on the issues of common concern which are at the forefront of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency, especially those pertaining to the Western Balkans.

"Both Slovenia and Greece support the European perspective for all Western Balkan countries, provided that these countries fulfil the same conditions for EU membership that were required of other countries that are now Member States,” said the Slovenian Prime Minister. The two countries also share the same view on efforts to stabilise the situation in the region and deploy a civilian EU mission in Kosovo. “As to the future status of Kosovo, we are both striving for a solution that will stabilise the region in the long term and preserve the unity of the European Union on the matter,” said Mr Jansa.
Both Prime Ministers also welcomed the recent presidential elections in Serbia, in which the people of Serbia had, in the opinion of the Slovene Prime Minister, chosen to follow the European path. “We hope that developments in the coming weeks and months linked to stabilising the situation in the region and determining the future status of Kosovo will have a positive effect on the situation in the region, strengthening the European perspective for the Western Balkan countries and helping the region to become more stable at the end of the Slovenian Presidency, with at least one of its unresolved issues having been resolved,” said Mr Jansa after the talks with the Greek Prime Minister.
In addition, the Prime Ministers touched on the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’s prospects of a future in Europe. In this regard, the Slovene Prime Minister said he hoped that this country would take up serious talks with the Greek side with a view to seeking a constructive compromise on the name issue.
The talks held this evening also focused on the energy and climate package recently proposed by the European Commission. In the Prime Minister’s opinion, this package provides a sound practical basis for, in the coming months, sharing the burden of implementing energy and climate commitments and combating climate change in an equitable way.
As for bilateral cooperation between Slovenia and Greece, the Slovene Prime Minister said he was pleased that a direct air service between the two countries would be established, operating as of the end of March, thus additionally increasing the mutual exchange of goods, services and tourists.

Prime Ministers Jansa and Karamanlis focus on the Western Balkans

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