Reuters: EU divided over Balkan accession as NATO says Macedonia welcome | Reuters

By Reuters.

Published June 25, 2018 at 2:50 pm

Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama (C) speaks with France's President Emmanuel Macron (2ndR) and Lithuania's President Dalia Grybauskaite (2ndL) as they pose for a family photo during an EU-Western Balkans Summit in Sofia on May 17, 2018. European Union leaders meet their Balkan counterparts to hold out the promise of closer links to counter Russian influence, while steering clear of openly offering them membership.

Photo by AFP

The European Union is divided over whether to allow membership talks with Albania and Macedonia as anti-immigration sentiment rises in the bloc, but NATO is ready to welcome Skopje into the Western military alliance.

With broad support for membership talks from other EU governments and the European Commission, Albania and Macedonia hope Europe ministers will agree the go-ahead at a meeting on Tuesday in Luxembourg, which would clear the way for approval by EU government leaders at a summit on June 28.