EU leaders agree on Ukraine’s European perspective, but not on the Western Balkans. Scenarios for abstention of Balkan countries as a sign of protest.
All indications are that EU leaders will eventually grant “candidate status” to Ukraine and Moldova at the forthcoming summit on Thursday. Of course, many national governments warn that the whole process “may take 15 to 20 years” until the two countries fully join. The same is pointed out by the French Minister for European Affairs, Clement Bon, speaking on behalf of the Council in the European Parliament. The performance of the “candidate country status” is considered more of a symbolic action, without automation for the start of accession negotiations.
But the “elephant in the room” is different: What about the countries of the Western Balkans, which are waiting patiently in the lobby of the EU, with or without “candidate country status”, but without finally taking a step towards full membership? Albania and Northern Macedonia are officially considered “candidate countries”, but accession negotiations have not yet begun. Negotiations have begun with Serbia and Montenegro, but are not progressing. As for Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, they are still a long way from being a “candidate country”.
Scenarios for “blockade” at the summit
Protesting stagnation in recent years, Serbian President Aleksandar VuÏ„Ï‚iÏ„Ï‚ said on Tuesday that both he and his counterparts in Albania and northern Macedonia were considering boycotting the “EU-Western Balkans Summit”. on Thursday in Brussels. Finally they reconsidered it and decided to give the present.
Many were those who pointed out that nothing good is predicted for their accession process, if they start threatening and “vetoing” from now on. Finally, the Prime Minister of Albania, Edi Rama, confirmed via Twitter the participation of the three countries, which, as he characteristically states, want to express their views “on the open Balkans that promote the spirit of Europe and on our hostage-taking from Bulgaria. that destroys it … “
Rama’s protest over Bulgaria’s stance, which is currently blocking the start of accession talks with neighboring northern Macedonia, is more than obvious. Skopje was granted “candidate country status” 17 full years ago, but there has been no development since. The country has changed its name, in order to overcome the previous negative attitude of Greece. But now it is facing Bulgaria’s veto, which invokes historical reasons and issues of national identity, which many consider rather absurd.
And all this despite the fact that the new Bulgarian government, which promotes a progressive and pro-European profile, seemed determined to break the “heavy tie”. This, however, caused intra-government friction and eventually led to the dissolution of the ruling coalition under Prime Minister Kirill Petkov. Six months later, Bulgaria is leading to new snap elections, unless it is approved by President Rumen Radev.
The EU needs a solution for the Western Balkans
And yet there must be a solution for the Western Balkans, says Sophie Intfeld, a Dutch MEP of the Liberal political group (Renew Europe), who, as she says, understands the indignation of the candidate countries. “We are in danger of losing all these people, while at the same time Russia and China are opening doors and gaining sympathy,” said the Dutch MEP. Of particular concern in Brussels is Serbia’s increasingly obvious pro-Russian policy. That is why the Liberal MEP, but also the Greens in the European Parliament, are proposing to agree on a roadmap for the accession of the Western Balkans. Sophie Intfeld even claims that “no one can demand from countries like Ukraine or the Western Balkans to implement the necessary reforms now, but to wait for another generation until they join. “Problems with the rule of law or the fight against corruption can be better addressed inside and outside the EU.”
This view is close to that of Austria, which is now emerging as a major supporter of the Western Balkans in the EU. to alter the prescribed procedure “. The central idea is that in areas where candidate countries meet the criteria for membership, for example in energy or transport, they should be treated as members, even if they are not members. But even in this case the decisions on the “synchronization” of the candidate countries with the member states would be taken unanimously.
Eddy Rama, Aleksandar Vucic and Nikola Dimitrov
However, the previous alternative proposal of French President Emanuel Macron has not been rejected: to give the EU’s eastern neighbors an opportunity to connect, which will be inferior to full membership, but at the same time attractive enough to keep them on a European path. But is this perspective realistic? Probably not, says Tinatin Aqulediani, a researcher at the Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS) in Brussels. “Without strong political will, there is no targeting,” he said. “The EU needs to clarify what it wants to achieve in its neighborhood, how far it wants to go with enlargement policy and what the new member states will be. We need more clarity, not more confusion. “
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