Representatives of countries of the Western Balkans hoping to join the European Union came away with little to show from their meeting with EU foreign ministers at the Gymnich meeting hosted by the Czech presidency of the EU.

Deutsche Welle said that seven western Balkan nations aspiring to join the EU had their hopes dampened by French and German officials reluctant to see the 27-member bloc expanding in times of unfinished inner reforms and global economic crisis.

"There will be no enlargement if there is no Lisbon Treaty," French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner said on March 28 2009 at the meeting in southern Bohemia. Such meetings are traditionally dubbed "Gymnich" after the German castle where it was held for the first time in 1974.

Kouchner’s position was echoed by German foreign ministry officials, who said: "We will not be in a position to accept new member states in the EU without the Lisbon Treaty," Deutsche Welle said.

Euronews quoted European Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn as telling a news conference: "The foreign ministers firmly reconfirmed the European perspective of the Western Balkans".

"In the recent past, we have had perhaps some relative political stability in the region but certainly no end of history, no eternal peace yet. And therefore we need to continue our policy of stabilisation which by (an)other name is called enlargement – this gradual process of enlargement of the European Union," Rehn said.

The meeting’s message about the importance of ratifying the reform treaty is particularly relevant for the Czech hosts.

Last week’s no confidence vote in the Czech Republic’s coalition government, which led the government to resign, has cast doubt on whether Prague will finally give Lisbon the green light. It is not clear how Mirek Topolanek will stay in office as prime minister as his acting role as head of government depends on the outcome of attempts to form a new government.

Czech foreign minister Schwarzenberg said that while it might take longer than originally planned, the treaty would be ratified, Radio Netherlands said.

The future of the Lisbon Treaty was plunged into uncertainty when Irish voters rejected the treaty in a referendum. Ireland will be holding a second referendum later this year.

A statement released after the meeting by the Czech EU presidency said that the progress of each country of the Western Balkans towards the EU "must be based on individual merits and rigorous conditionality, guiding the necessary political and economic reforms, in accordance with the renewed consensus on enlargement as expressed in the European Council conclusions of 14/15 December 2006".

Referring to current and upcoming elections in the Western Balkans region, the Presidency recalled the importance of ensuring free and fair elections in line with international standards and commitments.

The statement said that the economic downturn in Europe called for solidarity and close co-operation between the EU, international financial institutions and the Western Balkan countries.

"The latter are continuing to benefit from EU support to economic stability and development and will also receive focussed support from the Crisis Response Package under the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance," the statement said.

It said that participants in the meeting "assessed positively" the co-operation during the recent gas crisis.

The statement said that the Stabilisation and Association Process remains the overall framework for the European course of the Western Balkan countries all the way to their future accession.

"By making solid progress in economic and political reform and by fulfilling the necessary conditions and requirements, the remaining potential candidates in the Western Balkans should achieve candidate status, according to their own merits, with European Union membership as ultimate goal."

Stabilisation and Association Agreements and Interim Agreements have been signed with six Western Balkan countries.

On April 1 2009, Albania will become the third country (after the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Croatia) with the Stabilisation and Association Agreement in force.

The implementation of the Interim Agreement and the ratification of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement with Serbia will commence as soon as the Council decides that Serbia fully co-operates with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. "An early implementation of the Interim Agreement is desirable," the media statement said.

The statement said that participants in the meeting "discussed ways of assisting the economic and political development of Kosovo through a clear European perspective, in line with the European perspective of the region".

Strengthening people-to-people contacts represents a tangible benefit of the European integration for the citizens of the Western Balkans, the statement said.

"A visa free regime should be established with all Western Balkan countries when the benchmarks defined in the visa liberalisation roadmaps are met. Student and young professional exchanges represent a particular contribution to fostering harmony and overcoming prejudice among the people of the Western Balkans and should be further promoted."

The statement said that "good neighbourly relations and the need to find mutually acceptable solutions on outstanding issues with neighbouring countries remain essential elements of the region's way towards the EU".  

This is likely to be interpreted to a reference to, among other issues, the prolonged dispute between Athens and Skopje over the use of the name Macedonia, an issue where the failure to achieve a compromise is prompting Athens to block Macedonia’s EU hopes.

Regional co-operation among the Western Balkan countries is a key element of the Stabilisation and Association Process, the statement said.

"It contributes to a shared understanding in the region and to finding solutions for issues of common interest, such as in the fields of energy, transport, trade, fight against organised crime and corruption, refugee return and border control."

"In this context, the participants commended the first year of work of the Regional Co-operation Council and reiterated that regional co-operation needs to be inclusive," the statement said.