Athens (Greece), October 1: Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his visiting Slovak counterpart Eduard Heger called for the acceleration of the Western Balkan countries' European Union (EU) accession process during their meeting here on Thursday.
"We agreed that the accession process ... must be accelerated in order to prevent the Western Balkans from becoming a hotbed of new problems. The Balkan Peninsula is European, therefore its future passes only through Europe," Mitsotakis said in a joint statement to the press, quoted by the Greek national broadcaster ERT.
The meeting was held ahead of the upcoming EU-Western Balkans summit to be held in Slovenia next week, which according to its agenda will explore ways to strengthen cooperation on political and security matters and help the region's socio-economic recovery in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Security in the wider region, which includes the eastern Mediterranean Sea, is a key precondition to economic growth after the pandemic, Mitsotakis stressed.
The two leaders also discussed the migration crisis in the light of recent developments in Afghanistan and the challenges of climate change.
Slovakia is ready to help Greece by sharing know-how and experience in reforestation, Heger said, expressing solidarity with Greece over this summer's destructive wildfires, which scorched forested areas and farmland.
"We will all benefit if we face the challenges together," he stressed.
Source: Xinhua