Portuguese Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva said on Tuesday that expansion remains in the European Union’s focus during his country’s presidency.

He told the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs that he welcomes the new Serbian government’s commitment to the European integration process and the dialogue with Pristina. I hope that there will be progress … and I think the new methodology has been integrated into the current negotiations with Montenegro and Serbia, he added. He also said that he believes Serbia will open at least one chapter this year.

European External Action Service chief Stefano Sannino said that the EU will devote attention to the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue. According to him, the political turbulence in Kosovo is not helping the process but that could change soon. The Western Balkans will be very high on our agenda and we have a special responsibility towards it and can’t leave things unfinished, he said and added that what US envoy Richard Grenell did was useful only for the USA and that the EU has to take the lead in the region.