In a significant step towards facilitating this initiative, the committees also agreed to proceed with inter-institutional discussions with the EU Council. The European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Chair, David McAllister, has signaled an immediate start to the negotiations within the week, underlining the urgency to finalize agreements before the European Parliament’s current term ends.

The European Parliament has issued a statement declaring MEPs’ endorsement for stringent reforms and the enhancement of EU principles across the Western Balkans, prioritizing transparency, legal governance, and economic unification.
Following a consensus among EU member states’ ambassadors on March 6, the Council of the EU’s negotiating stance on the Western Balkan Reform and Growth Instrument was established. This development paves the way for the Council’s Presidency to initiate detailed negotiations with the European Parliament on the instrument’s definitive arrangement, as reported by the Council of the EU.