EU Commission President von der Leyen Launches Three-Day Western Balkans Tour
Ursula von der Leyen began a three-day trip to the Western Balkans, visiting Tirana, Pristina, Podgorica and Skopje and meeting local leaders.
The European Commission’s president arrived today for a three-day itinerary across the Western Balkans. Her schedule includes stops in Albania’s capital, Kosovo, Montenegro and North Macedonia, where she will hold talks with heads of state and inspect EU-funded projects. The visit follows a June summit where she emphasized that the EU cannot be complete without the region. Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia are not on the agenda this time.
Why it matters
The tour signals the EU’s continued push to integrate the Western Balkans and boost regional development.
How this story developed
- Sep 1 Germany pushes for deeper Japan partnership to cut chip reliance on China
- Sep 15 German firms have moved to partner with Japanese companies on chip components.
- Sep 17 Prime Minister Mark Carney told the European Parliament that Canada appreciates the EU’s offer to join as its inaugural associate member and outlined a wide-ranging partnership vision.
- Sep 17 President Donald Trump threatened steep tariffs in response to the EU‑Canada partnership proposal.
- Sep 19 EU officials noted that the associate‑member concept has no existing definition in EU law and would need unanimous approval of all member states.
- Sep 21 EU trade commissioner Maroš Šefčovič scheduled a visit to China to discuss the export curbing request.
- Sep 24 Prime Minister Mark Carney said his government has studied the possibility of a US-led military move against Canada, calling it an extreme tail risk, while noting frequent talks with President Donald Trump amid a worsening trade dispute.
- Sep 26 The proposal was raised publicly at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
- Sep 27 The United States imposed 50 % duties on $28 billion of Canadian imports.
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