Pierre Mirel, a veteran of enlargement, who holds the position of Honorary General Director at the European Commission said in the latest episode of #BalkansDebrief with Ilva Tare that it is too early to speak about the impact of the newly introduced EU methodology with Albania and North Macedonia accession talks.
In the interview he argued that there is not much political will in the EU due to economic situation, inflation and migration issue, which may create bigger gaps between the East and the West in the months to come.
“There are a number of Member States, who are not really thrilled at welcoming new members, because they might be worries that the new members may, within a few years, become close allies to Orban and become illiberal,” stressed Mirel.
He added that the political will to join the EU varies in different states in the Western Balkans and there are obstacles that we cannot foresee.
“For instance, how long would it take for Serbia to overcome the bilateral issue with Kosovo. We don’t know. No one would’ve expected Bulgaria to veto North Macedonia. And this maybe is not the end. How will Bulgaria behave during the accession process? Nobody knows. Montenegro Prime Minister Abazovic is willing to fight high level corruption, but when he really start doing that, his government may collapse due to lack of Djukanovic’s DPS,” continued Mirel.
Speaking about Serbia’s political will to join the EU, Mirel said that there is limited willingness and according to his personal opinion President Vucic is convinced that the short term, medium term political gains of having a kind of status-quo for Serbia on its EU path are much higher than the potential long term benefit of the EU accession.
“The EU is trying to find a balance between, pushing Serbia, but not too much, because Serbia is so close to another camp or two other camps, Russia and China.”
Responding to the question about Albania and North Macedonia willingness to join the EU, Pierre Mirel said that Albania has gone through an astonishing, unprecedented justice reform. However, the Member States will monitor its progress, he noted.
“What would happen after the judiciary reform in Albania? Will the effort stop? Will it continue? What will happen to the highly polarized political situation in Albania with the split of the Democratic Party in two parts.” Mirel added.
Ilva Tare, is a Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council in Washington, D.C. She is now hosting Balkans Debrief, a new talk show presented by the Atlantic Council’s Europe Center.
Balkans Debrief features in-depth analysis and exclusive insights with policymakers and key players on subjects impacting more than 18 million people.
