German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron called for rapid enlargement at the European Union-Western Balkans Summit in Montenegro, acknowledging that the EU itself shares responsibility for the fact that Western Balkan states have not yet integrated into the bloc.

“If we have not accepted a new member in 13 years, this also points to shortcomings on the European Union side. Today, we want to overcome these,” German Chancellor Merz said.

Merz stated that the bloc must demonstrate both its capacity and its political will for enlargement.

The Western Balkans region comprises Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Serbia. All six countries submitted official applications to join the bloc many years ago.

“Membership-lite” model on the agenda

French President Macron emphasized the critical importance of the region for the EU. Pointing to areas such as energy, security, and migration routes, Macron said that Europe’s strategic independence will also be determined in the Western Balkans, rendering the region geopolitically critical.

Merz and Macron attended the summit in the Adriatic coastal town of Tivat with a joint draft proposal designed to bring candidate countries closer to the bloc at a faster pace.

Under the model proposed by the two leaders, candidate countries would be granted observer status in EU institutions. The initiative aims to enable these countries to participate more closely in decision-making processes and to gain privileged access to the EU internal market through gradual integration. These steps are also intended to accelerate the domestic reform process in candidate states.

The joint document noted that “overly bureaucratic and formalistic procedures” must be simplified and the negotiation process accelerated.

To build a “true European union,” the text emphasized that additional incentives should be offered within a performance-based, gradual integration framework. However, both leaders stated that the ultimate goal remains full membership at a faster pace.

Mixed reactions to the summit

Among the candidate nations, Montenegro is at the most advanced stage of the accession process, followed by Albania. EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos stated that Montenegro could be admitted as the 28th member of the bloc by the end of 2028.

The initiative drew varied reactions from Balkan leaders. Montenegrin President Jakov Milatovic described the summit as a “turning point,” saying, “Our meeting offers new hope and fresh energy for all Western Balkan countries.”

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama adopted a more cautious tone, noting that the initiative has “deepened the debate.”

While calling on Merz and Macron to exert greater effort toward rapid enlargement, Rama refrained from predicting a specific accession date for Albania. “It is impossible to predict when Albania will become a member. There are three things in the world that cannot be predicted: God, sex, and the EU,” Rama said.

Officials in Brussels continue to view the close relations that certain candidate countries—particularly Serbia—have developed with Russia with a critical eye. The EU regularly calls on Belgrade to align with sanctions against Russia.

According to observers, North Macedonia, which has been a NATO member since 2020, faces the risk of falling into the sphere of influence of Serbia and China.

Furthermore, high tensions flare periodically among countries in the region, particularly between Serbia and Kosovo, as well as between Serbia and Montenegro.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a move that Belgrade has refused to recognize. Montenegro became an independent state in 2006 after separating from its state union with Serbia.

The European Union’s proposed 21st sanctions package against Russia has stalled due to objections from Greece over planned restrictions on liquefied natural gas (LNG) transport, diplomatic sources familiar with the matter told the Financial Times.

According to the report, Athens opposed a provision in the sanctions draft that would ban the transshipment of Russian LNG to third countries.

Sources indicated that the diplomatic intervention by Greece is aimed at protecting Dynagas, a shipping company owned by Greek shipowner George Prokopiou. During a meeting on Wednesday, the Greek Permanent Representative to the EU told counterparts that the proposed sanctions would ruin the company.

Data from the maritime database Equasis shows that Dynagas operates a fleet of 27 gas carriers. This fleet includes “Arc7” ice-class tankers, which are custom-built to operate safely in the freezing waters of the Arctic region where Russia’s Yamal LNG plant is located.

Prokopiou, a prominent businessman, owns the shipping companies Dynacom, Dynagas Holding, and Sea Traders. He also holds a 43% stake in the publicly traded Dynagas LNG Partners. According to Forbes, Prokopiou and his family have an estimated net worth of $4.7 billion.

European diplomats speaking to the Financial Times emphasized that other member states have sacrificed their own commercial interests for the sake of enforcing sanctions against Russia.

The new sanctions draft proposed by the EU also includes a provision to lower the price cap under which companies can purchase and transport Russian oil without facing the risk of secondary sanctions.

To buy time for negotiations, EU permanent representatives were forced to pass an emergency resolution extending the existing price cap of $44.1 per barrel for another week. The Financial Times noted that without this temporary extension, oil prices could have risen sharply due to ongoing tensions between the US and Iran.

Kaja Kallas, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, expressed regret over the failure to reach a consensus on the sanctions package.

“Of course, member states have different reasons for objecting. Our goal is to reach an agreement. If an agreement cannot be reached, we will start working on Plan B,” Kallas said.

In a previous statement on July 13, Kallas had acknowledged that anti-Russian sanctions were causing harm to the European economy.

According to a report by Politico, talks have been postponed to July 22 after member states failed to reach an agreement on the new sanctions package for three consecutive days. The publication identified Greece and Austria as the primary countries blocking the measures.

Vienna is reportedly conditioning its approval on a compensation clause regarding the Austria-based Raiffeisen Bank. Austria is demanding the inclusion of a mechanism in the sanctions package to compensate the bank for €2.44 billion in losses resulting from precautionary measures taken against its subsidiary in Russia.

Meanwhile, Greece raised concerns regarding previously agreed EU restrictions on the Russian LNG trade dating from October 2025. Sources speaking to Politico indicated that these objections from Athens remain unresolved.

The decade of uncertainty following the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union is set to end on Wednesday as the 118-year-old physical border between Gibraltar and Spain is dismantled.

Although the British Mediterranean territory voted by 95.9% to remain in the EU during the 2016 referendum, it was forced to leave the bloc as a consequence of the UK’s wider decision.

Following the departure, passport controls became more stringent and the transit of commercial goods grew increasingly complex for the thousands of people who cross the border daily, including 15,000 Spanish citizens who work in the territory.

In an effort to resolve these complications, administrations in Brussels, London, Gibraltar, and Madrid have spent ten years negotiating the removal of physical checks at the Spanish border.

Two-tier checks to be implemented at the airport

Under the terms of the agreement, Gibraltar will remain fully under British sovereignty and territory, but the land border will effectively become nothing more than a line on a map.

The technical details of the implementation mirror the procedures used for the Eurostar train line operating beneath the English Channel. Similar to the system at London’s St Pancras station, passengers arriving at Gibraltar Airport will clear both Gibraltar and EU passport controls in succession.

Passengers who receive clearance from both authorities will be permitted to travel freely within Gibraltar and the Schengen zone.

Through this mechanism, physical checks at the land border between Gibraltar and Spain will be completely eliminated.

Gibraltar will also align with specific aspects of the EU single market and customs regulations to facilitate the flow of goods, the supply of which had become difficult following Brexit.

While the Gibraltar administration emphasizes that it is not legally part of the Schengen zone and will retain the authority to determine its own visa policy, the arrangement will in practice offer a level of convenience similar to the Schengen regime, as there will be no passport control upon entering Spain.

Agreement to be formalized in Brussels

The UK Minister for Europe, Stephen Doughty, and the European Commission Executive Vice-President, Maroš Šefčovič, are formally signing the agreement in Brussels on Tuesday.

The process has been a cross-party effort in the UK, with former Foreign Secretary David Cameron also working extensively during his term to finalize the accord.

The agreement reached the signature stage in the spring of 2024, but the decision of then-British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to call a snap general election, followed by the subsequent change of government, delayed the process by a year.

While Eurosceptics within the British Conservative Party argue that the agreement compromises Gibraltar’s sovereignty, the Gibraltar government supports the implementation of the plan.

Speaking to the Telegraph newspaper ahead of the removal of the border controls, Gibraltar’s Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, strongly criticized Brexit.

“Brexit was the greatest self-inflicted wound the United Kingdom has delivered to itself since the Second World War,” Picardo said. “Brexit was sold to the British public on false promises. The United Kingdom should seriously re-evaluate its relationship with the European Union, including returning to membership or establishing a much closer partnership.”