Former British Europe Minister Denis Macshane has believes that Islamophobia is behind France’s refusal to allow Macedonia and Albania to open European Union accession talks.

French President Macron acknowledged in 2017, when he had a vision for Europe, that “the EU will have to open itself up to the Balkan countries, because our EU is still attractive and its aura is a key factor of peace and stability on our continent.” Now Macron has changed policy 180 degrees. The assumption is that he does not want to give any ammunition to Marine Le Pen, who will denounce the fact that three of the nations – Albania, Kosovo and “North Macedonia” – have European Muslim populations. But there are more Muslims in France and Germany than all of the Balkans, and President Macron and Chancellor Merkel should not allow their EU policy to be dictated by Islamaphobes like Marine Le Pen or the AfD in Germany, Macshane writes in an editorial published by the Greek daily Kathimerini.

The twice disgraced former Labour MP (he was sentenced to six months in prison in 2013 over an expensing scandal and was forced to apologize for turning a blind eye to the Rotherham Muslim grooming scandal) is known in Macedonia as a reliable supporter of Albanian national causes, but also for his famous gesture in 2004, when he wound his watch urging Macedonians not to waste time in rushing to join the EU. At the time, Macshane demanded that Macedonians don’t turn out to vote in a referendum meant to nullify a law that redraw municipal borders and turned the cities of Struga and Kicevo from majority Macedonian to majority Albanian. The referendum failed due to a low turnout, and 15 years later the promised EU membership is no closer to materializing.

http://www.ekathimerini.com/240109/opinion/ekathimerini/comment/merkel-macron-slam-door-in-face-of-europeans-between-aegean-and-adriatic