Skopje, 8 June 2022 (MIA) – The US encourages Open Balkan initiative to remain economic. It is not a political project; it is an important economic project and it is important to remain economic and focus on creating opportunities for the people of the region in this way you will have support, said US Deputy Assistant Secretary and Special Representative for the Western Balkans, Gabriel Escobar, in an online video address at the Open Balkan Summit in Ohrid. “For the USA, we do not look at the Western Balkans from the point of view of the problems of the 1990’s; we look at it from the prism of the opportunities of the 21^st century. And the opportunities of the Western Balkans are enormous. The Western Balkans are blessed with geographic position, blessed with natural resources but most importantly they are blessed with very strong entrepreneurial spirit and for decades the people of the Western Balkans have been building my country and they have been building Europe and out of the gratitude we support the Open Balkans to help you to help your people build the Western Balkans,” Escobar said. He noted that the Western Balkans have the potential to be a hub for renewable energy, which will help us meet our climate change goals. “It has a capacity for being a hub for liquid natural gas and help Europe unwind itself from dependence of the Russian gas. It has capacity to be center for shipping, transportation, IT and tourism. The Western Balkans are already the fastest growing part of Europe and it is true that many of us are likely going to face some economic challenges over the next few years, the idea of facing those challenges together makes it a little bit more easy to deal with,” he said. Escobar underlined that the US supports the Open Balkan initiative and that their support is based on many things. “First it should be not just regional economic cooperation but about cooperation and integration into the broader European structure. Even though cross-border trade within the Western Balkans is very important, the majority of the supply chains and the market is Europe. 70% of your trade is already with Europe and it should be geared toward greater European integration. We support all economic initiatives that bring the region closely together and promote peace and cooperation among the countries of the Western Balkans,” he added. Escobar also said that the US believes that in order for this to be successful, it should be open to all of them and every initiative for economic integration should include all six countries of the Western Balkans. “This is a tremendous initiative coming at an important time in the history and for the development of the Western Balkans. I hope to see greater clarity on how it plans to operate. And in that regard I have few recommendations for our friends. One, as I mentioned there are many opportunities and many initiatives for integration of the Western Balkans. So, I encourage the leaders of this initiative to look for ways to concretely harmonise the Open Balkans with all of the other initiatives that are operating in the region,” he said. He also added that the US encourages the plan for institutional development of the Western Balkans. “It could have some competitive advantages by creating greater predictability for investors, and most importantly creating the opportunities and institutional development for those institutions that should reduce smuggling and tax evasion, because it is that informal economy that creates an uncompetitive playing field for those investors who want to operate legally. I encourage the leaders of this initiative to engage more broadly and bring in more stakeholders, to engage openly with chambers of commerce in the region. Their voice would be very important in shaping the policies and the institutions of the Open Balkan initiative,” Escobar noted.