Leaders of the Western Balkans gathered in the Albanian coastal city of Durrës on Monday for the annual Brdo-Brijuni Process summit, an initiative aimed at promoting regional cooperation and advancing the region’s long-delayed path toward European Union membership. But what was intended as a forum for dialogue and reconciliation was marred by sharp exchanges over EU reform and friction between Serbia and Kosovo.

The summit — co-chaired by Albanian President Bajram Begaj, Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar and Croatian President Zoran Milanović — brought together the presidents of Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Kosovo to discuss integration, stability and the geopolitical challenges facing the Western Balkans amid war in Ukraine and growing tensions between the EU and Russia.

The Brdo-Brijuni Process, launched in 2010 by Slovenia and Croatia, was conceived as a mechanism to help Western Balkan states coordinate their EU accession strategies and foster reconciliation after the conflicts of the 1990s.

Begaj, who opened the meeting, reaffirmed his country’s commitment to European values and cooperation. 

“Albania supports dialogue and good neighborly relations as a basis for European peace, development and integration,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). 

“Integration in the EU is a national mission, widely supported by our society, because it reflects the values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law.”

Disputes over EU reform

However, Milanović used the occasion to deliver a characteristically blunt warning against reforming EU decision-making rules, rejecting a German- and Slovenian-backed initiative to replace unanimity with qualified majority voting in certain policy areas.

“ The initiative to abolish unanimity in EU decision-making has neither my support nor that of the Croatian Government,” Milanović said, according to a statement from the presidency. “In my view, [unanimity] is an instinctive defence mechanism of small states against much larger ones that do not understand us and do not see us.”

He argued that giving up the veto right could undermine smaller EU members’ sovereignty. “Some countries are simply too big to be treated in the same way as others,” Milanović said. “This influence simply needs to be kept in check.”

Milanović also pushed back against claims that the European Union is on the verge of collapse. “The European Union will not fall apart because it is a major project into which so much time and money have been invested,” he said. 

However, he added, that the union of 27 countries is no loner a peace project. 

“The EU started as a peace project, but it definitely no longer is … we have started appointing so-called commissioners for defence. In my opinion, that is not the right path and not something that the European Union — which was designed and structured for something else — can withstand.”

Slovenia calls for reform

Slovenia’s Pirc Musar struck a more pragmatic tone, describing enlargement as “the most effective geopolitical tool for ensuring stability, peace and security in the region”.  She urged both EU institutions and Western Balkan governments to move faster, but “without lowering standards”. 

“Only a credible enlargement process can stimulate real reforms,” Pirc Musar said. She called for full implementation of the EU’s new Growth Plan for the Western Balkans, which aims to link financial assistance to tangible progress on governance and the rule of law.

Pirc Musar also warned that the region’s persistent emigration of young professionals, often referred to as “brain drain”, threatens its long-term stability. “Too many of them are leaving due to a lack of opportunities at home,” she said. “Reducing brain drain and creating circular migration must become a common priority.”

Kosovo-Serbia tensions 

The summit was reportedly overshadowed by tensions between Kosovan President Vjosa Osmani and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, reflecting ongoing hostility between Belgrade and Pristina despite EU-brokered talks aimed at normalising relations.

According to Albanian broadcaster RTSH, Osmani accused Vučić of arriving at the meeting “with arrogance and offensive remarks” and trying to disrupt the proceedings. She said the leaders nonetheless adopted a joint declaration unanimously.

Osmani defended Kosovo’s recent defence cooperation pact with Albania and Croatia, saying it was “a purely defensive alliance” formed “to safeguard against external threats, specifically from Serbia”. 

Osmani also criticised the EU for delaying the removal of punitive measures on her country, and for failing to process Kosovo’s membership application.

Vucic responded by questioning Osmani’s remarks on sovereignty, RTSH reported. “Imagine Vjosa Osmani speaking about territorial integrity while everyone else hears and shakes their heads,” he said, referencing her past work with the UN.

Despite the tensions, the summit concluded with a joint declaration reaffirming the participants’ “commitment to reconciliation, good neighbourly relations and efforts for sustainable development”, and acknowledging the need for a coordinated response to climate change, cyber threats and demographic challenges.

The Brdo-Brijuni Process was launched jointly by Slovenia and Croatia in 2010 to strengthen dialogue between EU member states and Western Balkan countries seeking accession. Named after the Slovenian town of Brdo pri Kranju and Croatia’s Brijuni Islands, the forum provides an annual platform for regional leaders to coordinate positions.

While the initiative has produced few concrete policy breakthroughs, it has served as an important diplomatic channel for countries still burdened by post-war grievances and political mistrust. Its agenda has gradually expanded from EU enlargement to include issues such as climate change, digital transformation, migration, and youth employment.

All six countries from the Western Balkans are aiming for EU accession, but are at different stages in the process. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has reignited debate within the EU about enlargement as a geopolitical necessity rather than a bureaucratic process. Brussels has accelerated talks with Ukraine and Moldova, while signalling renewed openness to Western Balkan candidates.