Von der Leyen starts Balkan tour from Tirana: The agenda of the visit to four countries of the region unveiled

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will start her sixth annual Western Balkans tour from Tirana on Wednesday. The European Commission has unveiled the official agenda of this regional visit, which will take the EU’s senior leader to Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia, with a particular focus on accelerating integration reforms and implementing the €6 billion Growth Plan for the region.

The diplomatic trip will officially open in the Albanian capital, where Von der Leyen will be received in high-level meetings by the President of the Republic, Bajram Begaj, and Prime Minister Edi Rama. Besides official political talks on the next membership steps, the head of the EU executive has also planned a visit to the reconstructed premises of the “Emin Duraku” school in Tirana.

The intensive agenda will continue on Thursday in Pristina, where the Commission President will hold meetings with the acting President, Albulena Haxhiu, and Prime Minister Albin Kurti, before moving the same day to Podgorica for talks with President Jakov Milatović and Prime Minister Milojko Spajić. The regional tour will conclude on Friday in Skopje with meetings with North Macedonia’s leaders, while Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina have been left out of this trip because of upcoming electoral processes in those countries.