Balkans

NOVI SAD - Serbian Minister of Internal and External Trade Tomislav Momirovic said on Monday Serbia would fight to connect regional markets, as well as to protect its interests.

Economic growth in the six Western Balkan countries is projected to rise 3.2% this year and 3.5% in 2025, going back to pre-pandemic averages but still too low for faster convergence with the European Union, the World Bank has said in a report.

When Nikos Veropoulos sold his supermarket chain in Greece to Metro AEBE in 2016, he held onto the outlets under the Vero brand in the Balkans. It was a wise move that is being followed today by more Greek chains seeking to expand into neighboring markets with greater growth potential and a younger clientele.

Today, the iconic "Shipka" pass finds itself enveloped in a blanket of snow, with temperatures plummeting to minus 3 degrees Celsius.

The Foreign Ministry has said it "warmly welcomes the decision of the European Council to start the accession negotiations of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the European Union."

A senior US official visited Montenegro Monday to offer support to the small Balkan nation seeking to join the European Union.

During a press conference in the capital Podgorica, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Gabriel Escobar said Montenegro should be next in line to join the 27-nation bloc.

The European Commission is set to recommend that the EU open accession talks with Bosnia and Herzegovina, despite lingering ethnic divisions in the Western Balkan country. At the same time, US Special Representative to the Western Balkans Gabriel Escobar is also in the region.

BELGRADE - Serbian Finance Minister Sinisa Mali announced the Open Balkan member states - Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia - had on Friday, March 1 officially established a common labour market.

Mali said electronic services for applications by workers would become available next week and that the eGovernment portals of the three countries would become interconnected.

On the eve of the summit, Vui assessed that connecting economies, removing obstacles and progressing towards a single market are "big goals that lead to the essential development" of Serbia and the region and a better future for all citizens.

TIRANA - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday Serbia would double its GDP to 140 or 150 bln euros over the next ten years.