Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair came to Skopje today for a meeting with Zoran Zaev, where he promoted the so-called Open Balkan initiative. The Zaev Government did not disclose whether Blair is here on one of the paid junkets he’s been taking since retirement from politics.

According to the press release, Blair and Zaev agreed that the “Open Balkan initiative is important and will contribute to the inter-connection of the region”. Zaev is promoting the Mini-Schengen or Open Balkan initiative since 2019, when Macedonia was blocked from opening EU accession talks even after the humiliating and imposed name change. The initiative should add to the already existing free trade and movement initiatives in the Balkans, but other than Serbia and Albania, no other country agreed to join. The Zaev Government, in its press release, insists that Blair and Zaev agreed that the initiative will push back against nationalist movements in the region. The two also discussed combatting the coronavirus crisis.

Blair is in Macedonia through his Institute for global change. He typically rakes between 100,000 and 300,000 pounds for a short speech post retirement. The Zaev Government is yet to reveal what was the financial compensation for his visit to Skopje.