Cross-border cooperation between Greece, Albania, Bulgaria and FYROM, with the aim of promoting a positive agenda in their relations, a stronger degree of understanding and to jointly address common challenges, will be at the heart of the Third Ministerial Meeting of the four countries to be held on Friday in Thessaloniki, with the participation of their respective foreign, interior and transport ministers.
Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias will welcome the ministers from Albania, Bulgaria and FYROM this afternoon and will offer them a working dinner at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, which is closed to the media.
The Ministerial Meeting of Greece, Albania, Bulgaria, FYROM is a Greek initiative and part of the overall strategy of international co-operation that has been implemented in recent years by Greek diplomacy. It is one of the three cooperation schemes in the Balkans region, at the level of foreign ministers, alongside the Quartet with the Balkan EU Member States (Croatia, Romania and Bulgaria) and the Trilateral Meeting with Bulgaria and Romania.
The 3rd Meeting took place six months after the 2nd meeting held in Thessaloniki (5/10/2017) and highlights the momentum of the particular scheme and the strong interest of the participants.
The foreign ministers of Greece, Albania, Bulgaria and FYROM are expected to focus on the new security challenges for the region as a result of recent developments in the Middle East.