Portugal backs the EU accession bids of Albania, North Macedonia, and Montenegro, the office of outgoing Prime Minister António Costa stated on Monday following his three-country tour. Costa, who will govern as acting prime minister until the snap elections in March, visited Tirana, Skopje and Podgorica on Sunday and Monday to reinforce his country’s commitment to EU enlargement. After meeting North Macedonia Prime Minister Dimitar Kovačevski on Monday, he had lunch with Montenegrin Prime Minister Milojko Spajić in Podgorica. Speaking about his North Macedonia trip, Costa wrote on X: “I was able to witness North Macedonia’s strong commitment to the EU accession process in a challenging geopolitical context. Albania and North Macedonia were granted the opening of accession talks in July 2022, with Tirana’s negotiations set to start in late December, while Skopje remains waiting over a veto from Bulgaria.

Source: The North Africa Journal December 05, 2023 06:14 UTC