site.btaEuropean Council President Proposes Sofia as Host of EU-Western Balkans Summit in 2018

Brussels, October 18 (BTA Correspondent Nikolay Jeliazkov) - European Council President Donald Tusk proposes that Sofia host a EU-Western Balkans Summit on May 17, 2018. This is included in the Leaders' Agenda, a document presented by Tusk on Tuesday that offers the list of priorities he would like the EU to focus on in the next two years.

In a letter to the EU heads of state and government on the occasion of the European Council meeting in Brussels this Thursday and Friday, Tusk says that there are conflicts of opinion within the EU on many topics, and proposes that any deadlock be broken by regular discussions and, if unsuccessful, to proceed with enhanced cooperation among the willing countries.

"We should preserve the unity that we have managed to develop over the past year. We need this unity in order to solve the migration crisis, to tackle unfair aspects of globalisation, to deal with aggressive third countries, to limit the damage caused by Brexit as well as to preserve the rules-based international order in these difficult times," the letter reads. In Tusk's words, some Member States may move forward more rapidly in specific areas, while keeping the door open for those who want to join later.

In the period of the Bulgarian Presidency of the EU Council, the Leaders' Agenda includes a high-level discussion on the composition of the European Parliament, as well as the topics of the EU budget, trade agreements, e-commerce, taxes, the Eurozone reform, and others.