Just dare mention Western Balkans - the "slogan" of German parties

Chancellor Angela Merkel's last trip abroad should take her to the Balkans. The media mention the meeting with the leaders of the Western Balkans in Tirana (September 14), but it is unofficially heard that the Chancellor could visit Belgrade beforehand. There is no official confirmation in Berlin yet.
If so, it would be a strong signal that Europe's most powerful politician's sixteen-year term ends with a visit to a region long promised to join the European Union, but still in the waiting room.
Despite big words about the "European perspective", which are still uttered on diplomatic occasions, the programs of the German parties before the elections on September 26 speak very modestly and twistedly about that "perspective". In fact, no party explicitly states that it will advocate for full membership of Serbia and its neighbors in the EU, the DW analysis shows.
"The Western Balkans is not a priority for German foreign policy, not even for the EU. This has been clear for years. The prevailing view in Berlin for many years is that stability is a regional priority, whatever that means", Sarajevo political scientist Jasmin Mujanovic said.

What the programs contain?

DW analyzed the programs of six leading German parties, compiled for the upcoming parliamentary elections (September 26). These are rather extensive documents, usually from one hundred to two hundred pages, where each party states what policy it would pursue in various fields if it gains the trust of the citizens.
According to opinion polls, the Social Democrats, the leading force from which ranks, as things stand at the moment, the next chancellor will be chosen, dedicates these few sentences to the region in the program: "Europe's neighborhood in the south and east...