The Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, said that Europe will not be "truly united" until the candidate countries of the Western Balkans join the EU, during her visit to Belgrade.
Six Western Balkan countries, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia, hope to join the bloc.
Meloni said that Serbia can count on Italy's support for its membership, highlighting migration as one of the areas where they can work together.
"I think that Europe is not a club in which someone decides who is European and who is not, it is history and geography that decides who is European, and I think that the European institutions should carry out a process that is serious and as soon as possible ", said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Italy is also planning to open two camps in Albania next spring, one to screen migrants on arrival and a second to hold them while asylum applications are processed, and hopes they can process up to 3,000 cases in month.