Eurostat data reveals average EU working hours of 35.9 per week, with significant disparities. Balkan nations like Turkey, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia report the longest hours (over 40), while the Netherlands has the shortest (31.9), largely due to high part-time employment.
EU leaders gather in Montenegro to accelerate Western Balkans enlargement, citing geopolitical imperatives amid Russian and Chinese influence, with Montenegro leading candidate nations.
The European Union plans to initiate a gradual integration process for six Western Balkan countries (Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia) seeking membership, with France and Germany pushing for faster, credible enlargement amid geopolitical pressures, including Russia's influence in the region.
EU leaders consider offering Western Balkan candidate countries observer status and limited Single Market access to maintain motivation during the lengthy accession process.
EU leaders gather in Tivat to reaffirm commitment to western Balkan enlargement, focusing on integration into the single market, despite internal EU divisions and geopolitical pressures from Russia and China.
France and Germany propose gradual integration for EU candidate countries, offering partial single market access and observer status to maintain motivation amid slow accession processes, especially for Western Balkan nations.
