GMF President: Commitment to the Balkans decreased
Craig Kennedy,President of the German Marshall Fund of the United States/EPA/JACQUES COLLET
The President of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, Craig Kennedy, stated during the opening of the Sofia Forum for the Balkans that the attention and commitment of Europe and the world to the Balkans has decreased dramatically in comparison to fifteen years ago.
The GMF President explained that the only positive consequence of the war on the Balkans was that many of the brightest minds of Europe and the U.S. were focused on this region and deeply involved in its development. However, Kennedy said that since the end of the war on the Balkans, the commitment of the various think-tanks working in the region has gradually decreased and many of them were either not so active anymore or have disappeared completely.
Furthermore, the GMF leader said that the fact that the Balkan region did not grab the headlines, as it used to fifteen years ago and as some other regions of the world today do, was not a prerequisite for dropping it out of the global agenda.
His statement was supported by Sandra Breka, Head of Department at the Robert Bosch Foundation who emphasized the decreased commitment of organizations, working in the region, which used to be very active in the past.
Craig Kennedy also praised all Balkan countries for their efforts in sharing experience and deepening their cooperation in various fields.
The Bulgarian Prime Minister, Boyko Borissov, was also present at the Sofia Forum for the Balkans and said that there was nothing better for the region, than the European perspective and its values. He added: ‘My dream is to see that all Balkan countries are full-fledged members of the European Union’.
In addition, Borissov said that security and financial stability were equally important and that fighting organized crime and corruption should be the primary aims for every country in the Balkans and in Europe. Lastly, he urged the participants in the forum to ‘support the measures and declarations of the EU in relation to the situation in Syria because the current regime deserves no tolerance’.
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