Johannes Hahn

The European Union should end accession negotiations with Turkey and pursue a different kind of cooperation with the country, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz told Kathimerini in an interview published on Sunday.

A spokesman for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Commissioner Johannes Hahn clarified on Wednesday that the EU official did not suggest a border change between Greece and Albania in remarks made at a Balkans conference earlier in the day.

"In no way did Commissioner Hahn refer to a border change," the spokesman said, replying to a question by Kathimerini.

European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Commissioner Johannes Hahn sparked controversy in local media Wednesday after suggesting that negotiations between Albania and Greece to delineate maritime borders in the Ionian sea could lead to a "restructuring of borders."

The European Commission on Wednesday blocked financial assistance for Moldova after the country's Supreme Court and the Electoral Commission last week cancelled the mayoral elections in the capital, Chisinau.

"The disbursement of the first tranche under the current Macro-Financial Assistance programme has ... been put on hold," the European Commission told BIRN on Wednesday.

He stressed that "not everyone wants s compromise, bearing in mind the views that are being presented, including some made today."

Vucic stressed at a joint press conference with EU Commissioner Johannes Hahn that, despite all this, "we will do everything to reach a compromise."

Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn said the European Commission would immediately start the preparations that would hopefully lead to opening EU accession talks for Macedonia and Albania in mid-2019.

Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) are set to sign a historic accord to modify the latter's name after Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras survived a no-confidence vote in Parliament Saturday.

The accord is to be signed in the Prespes region, a lake district which borders Greece, FYROM and Albania, by the two countries' foreign ministers Sunday.

European Union foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini and Commissioner in charge of regional policy Johannes Hahn issued on Tuesday a joint statement congratulating the prime ministers of Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) "in reaching this historic agreement between their countries, which contributes to the transformation of the entire region of South-East Europe."<

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and European Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn said this in a statement on Wednesday, Beta agency is reporting.

As diplomats from Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) prepare to resume talks in Vienna on Wednesday, European Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn on Tuesday expressed optimism that the dispute could be resolved in the next two weeks, Kathimerini writes.