Prague, Sep 13 (IANS): Prime ministers of the Visegrad Group (V4) countries, namely, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, released a joint statement in Prague after meeting with partners from the Western Balkans, supporting EU enlargement in the Western Balkans.

In the statement released on Thursday, the V4 leaders called on the European Union (EU) to accelerate ongoing accession talks with Montenegro and Serbia. They also support the opening of accession talks with North Macedonia and Albania later this year, Xinhua news agency reported.

The V4 leaders "reiterated their unequivocal support for the EU accession of the Western Balkans and their firm belief that reunification of Europe cannot be complete without them joining the European Union," according to the statement.

The statement also said that accession is and will remain a merit-based process fully dependent on the objective progress achieved.

In the statement, the V4 leaders also reiterated their support for the Western Balkan partners in their determination to maintain stability in the region, strengthen the rule of law, fight organised crime and corruption, enhance resilience to hybrid threats, prevent radicalization and keep the migratory movements under control.