TIVAT, Montenegro — Leaders from across the European Union and the Balkans are meeting in Montenegro on Friday to discuss expanding the bloc to include regional countries, an effort viewed as increasingly important for countering security and economic pressures from Russia and China.
The EU–Western Balkans summit, taking place in the coastal town of Tivat on the Adriatic Sea, brings together European officials including French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, the heads of EU candidate nations in the Balkans, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
A key focus of the talks is Montenegro’s EU bid. The small, mountainous former Yugoslav republic, which celebrated the 20th anniversary of its independence from Serbia last month, is hoping to advance toward membership.
Since joining NATO in 2017, the country of 623,000 has pursued an ambitious goal of becoming the EU’s 28th member by 2028. The slogan “28 by 28” is even displayed on one of the aircraft belonging to Montenegro’s national airline.
The EU has already set up a working group to draft Montenegro’s accession treaty — a clear sign that membership may be close. Montenegro is widely viewed as the leading candidate among the region’s hopefuls, ahead of Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo and North Macedonia.
Each of these countries is progressing through the accession process at its own pace, and the EU has recently intensified efforts to promote reforms amid concerns over Russia’s and China’s growing sway.
To qualify, candidate nations must align their legislation with EU standards across 35 policy areas, or “chapters,” covering everything from judicial reforms to agricultural and fisheries regulations. All 27 EU member states must give unanimous approval to open each chapter and again to close it.
Ukraine and Moldova are also among roughly ten countries seeking to join the bloc. Meanwhile, Iceland plans to hold a referendum in August on whether to launch an application.
