Berlin, Belgrade - German Chancellor Angela Merkel announcement that by the end of August she will invite all the countries of the Western Balkans to a conference about their path to the EU, can be interpreted as the willingness of the Germans to take care of the region, partly as a consequence of the Ukrainian crisis, said to Danas Predrag Simic, President of the Forum for International Relations of the European Movement in Serbia.

Merkel said last weekend that at such a conference "clearly will be stated" that Berlin wants to support the Western Balkans and to "look to the future together."

Simic explains that Germany during the eurozone crisis erupted to the first place in the EU, economically and politically, but found itself in a difficult situation due to the issue of Ukraine.

"The Germans have to be very active in the Balkans and in the EU, if they do not want Europe to be found onto the world periphery, or that the situation of the Cold War repeats. It is not Germany's interest to corrupt economic ties with Russia, so here they have different opinion from the United States. Germany is currently between a rock and a hard place, just like Serbia that seeks to preserve neutrality in the case of Ukraine. So, Berlin is the address for Belgrade that can count on in the context of continuing European integration, but it means that Serbia must comply with the terms mapped by Germany," notes Predrag Simic.

German Chancellor said during the weekend that she is looking forward to visit of Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic to Berlin, on Wednesday, June 11^th, and said she would talk to him about "the further course of Serbia". Merkel in a video message reminded that she talked to Vucic by phone earlier in connection with the floods, adding that Germany offered and provided practical support.

World's most powerful politician, noted that between Berlin and Belgrade there are differences of opinion, but that "productive tensions lead to change", pointing that two or three years ago, if someone had asked her whether Serbia would move this way in terms of Kosovo, she would respond suspiciously, but now significant progress is seen in cohabitation with Pristina.

Merkel recalled that Germany recognized the independence of Kosovo and expressed belief that and Serbia will go along "practical path to improve relations with Kosovo". "When you look at history, we see that such changes are accepted, but that certain changes are slow. It is important that Serbia wants to go to the EU. Certainly there are a lot of steps here. However, there will be peace in the Western Balkans only if there is a European perspective," explained Angela Merkel, noting that European history is closely linked with the history of the Western Balkans, noting also the hundredth anniversary of the beginning of World War I.

German Chancellor underlined that Berlin is not an official opponent of the expansion of the European Union and stressed that it only insists on meeting the existing criteria for the membership.

Rule of Law

Merkel in a statement stressed that one of the main issues on the road to the EU is rule of law, adding that the issue is in forefront of all discussions with representatives of the states. She said that from the quality of the legal system depends the willingness of German companies to invest.