Serbia, the biggest EU candidate country in the Western Balkans, has backslid on foreign policy alignment and must step up commitments to EU strategy and reform, according to the enlargement report published on Wednesday (12 October).
Evaluating events and progress from the last year, the report was clear that Serbia must do more to align itself with the bloc – most notably by joining EU-imposed sanctions on Russia – and push forward with serious reforms, backed with political will.
“Serbia’s compliance with EU’s foreign policy has significantly decreased – from 64% in 2020 to 45% today,” the country report stated, in reference to its refusal to join Western sanctions against Moscow.
This was echoed by EU Enlargement Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi, who told reporters it was also “clear that Serbia needs to step up its efforts in aligning with positions in foreign policy, including declarations and sanctions in line with the negotiating framework”.
The European Parliament passed in 2021 a resolution stating that Belgrade’s stance damages its EU accession progress but since then, the matter has continued to deteriorate.
“Serbia is expected, as a matter of priority, to fulfil its commitment and progressively align with the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy, including with EU restrictive measures, in line with EU-Serbia negotiating framework,” the report said.
But Belgrade has traditionally taken a position of neutrality regarding NATO and Russia and now is increasingly pushed to pick a side amid mounting pressure from Brussels and Moscow.
Furthermore, it has made headlines in recent months due to a stream of pro-Russia and anti-EU protests in the country, where protestors, including organisers linked to Russia, have praised Vladimir Putin, carried banners emblazoned with his face, and stamped on EU flags.
Serbia has long-standing good relations with Russia, including cultural and historical ties, and is almost totally reliant on Russian gas.
However, Varhelyi called on Serbia to show allyship with the bloc, in the context of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. “We need Serbia to help us, we need all the help, all the allies that we have,” he said.
Stagnated progress
The country has officially been a candidate since 2012. While it was initially projected to complete negotiations by 2024 and join in 2025, this is now highly unlikely.
Along with the Russia sanctions, the other main obstacle to Serbia’s EU accession is its refusal to recognise Kosovo’s independence. Belgrade has repeatedly stated that its path to membership should not be tied to the matter of its former province, which declared independence in 2008.
Other significant issues in Serbia include media, which is almost totally under the control of the ruling party, freedom of assembly, handling of war crimes, and human rights records in relation to minorities such as Albanians in the southern Presevo Valley, who are being removed from the civil registry, as well as corruption, organised crime and money laundering.
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“Regarding freedom of expression, no progress was made in the reporting period,” the report stated, adding, however, that there has been progress in how the national authorities have dealt with attacks on journalists.
Another key issue was that of EuroPride which takes place in a different European city each year, with 2022 being the turn of Belgrade.
Following outrage from the right, President Aleksander Vucic said the event would be banned due to the “significant crisis in Kosovo.” The authorities then banned the event, citing security concerns, but organisers went ahead with the march regardless.
The matter was condemned by MEPs and international human rights organisations, who warned it could impact Serbia’s EU path.
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But the harsh language used in the report is likely to make much of a negative impact in Belgrade as the Serbian public becomes increasingly less interested in EU accession.
While different surveys yield different results, the overall trend is that around half of the population is not in favour of EU accession. The number increases significantly if recognising Kosovo is listed as a pre-condition.
