Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis said on Saturday Greece, Bulgaria and Romania have agreed to increase their responsibilities for stability and growth on the Balkan region.
She made the remarks after a tripartite meeting in Athens, at Greece's initiative, with her Bulgarian and Romanian counterparts Ivaylo Kalfin and Adrian Cioroianu.
The three foreign ministers, who represent the NATO and EU member countries in Southeast Europe, agreed to boost their cooperation in view of the critical developments in Kosovo and the difficult situation in Serbia, and also reaffirmed their devotion to the European perspective of the western Balkans, which was rejuvenated by the recent Greek initiative "5 proposals with a timetable."
They stressed the importance of cooperation in the framework of the Black Sea Cooperation Economic Cooperation and the new EU neighborhood in the Black Sea.
Stressing the need for "the region's issues to be confronted by the region itself," the three ministers decided to hold a follow-up meeting in the first half of 2008 in Bucharest, which will prepare for a summit meeting among the prime ministers of the three countries later in 2008, in Sofia.
Bakoyannis told a joint press conference after the meeting, speaking on behalf of the Tripartite, that "the channels of communication between Belgrade and Pristina must remain open, regardless of what the 'following day' is."
"We share the same concerns, the same worries, but also the same vision for stability, peace and prosperity to the benefit of all the peoples," Bakoyannis added.
Source: Xinhua
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