EC ADOPTS EUR197 MILLION WESTERN BALKANS ASSISTANCE PROGRAMME

ZAGREB/BRUSSELS, Oct 22 (Hina) - The European Commission on Monday adopted a strategy for programming EUR197 million in assistance over the coming three years, focused on tackling regional problems in the western Balkans and on raising levels of regional cooperation between the countries of the region, the EC said in a statement. The assistance, which will be provided through the CARDS programme, is earmarked for four fields: the struggle against cross-border crime, the strengthening of national institutions, the support to democratic stabilisation and the development of the road and power supply infrastructure in the countries of the region, the EC said in a statement. The assistance is earmarked for Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. "The European Commission supports the participation of" the five countries "in the Stabilisation and Association process which is the cornerstone of the EU's policy in the region," the EC said in a statement. According to the Commission, the process is an ambitious strategy that helps the region to secure political and economic stabilisation while also developing a closer association with the EU, opening a road towards eventual EU membership once the conditions have been met. (hina) it