A new process has been entered for the full membership of the Western Balkans to the European Union (EU). It can be said that the EU tended to accelerate the process of the integration of the countries in the region after the Russia-Ukraine War. On the other hand, the Western Balkan countries, which have been advancing towards the EU for years, have expressed their discomfort with the slow progress of the enlargement process.
In the 2022 Enlargement Report published within the scope of the EU’s enlargement policy towards the Western Balkans, it was emphasized that the countries of the region were “part of Europe” and underlined that their rapid accession to the union served the strategic interests of the EU. In addition, the President of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen visited North Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia between 26-28 October 2022. And also, the EU-Western Balkans Summit is expected to be held in Tirana, the capital of Albania, on 6 December 2022.
From this point of view, Ankara Center for Crisis and Policy Studies (ANKASAM) presents the views of Rilind Berisha, Assistant Professor at the Kadri Zeka University to evaluate EU-Western Balkans relations.
- German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called for EU enlargement and reforms; it is known that France has the opposite approach. In this context, how do you evaluate the EU’s enlargement process toward the Western Balkans?
We should keep in mind that the EU is a big political, economic, social, and educational power, etc. but without the security/defense element, the European Union’s Army, it is still a fragile community in international relations. That’s why we talk about European single states on this topic. The war in Ukraine has changed international relations at and has stalled EU integration. This war has a direct impact on EU member states, in their way of thinking about security and defense policies. On one hand, it has made the EU reset its priorities and on the other hand, almost every Balkan country has its specific problems on its path toward the EU; let me just remind the recent Bulgarian-North Macedonian identity matter, Serbian ambiguity between the EU path and its position toward Russia, the same problem is with Milorad Dodik in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the fragile government in Montenegro and the endless dialogue between Pristina and Belgrade. All these are matters that the EU should take under consideration but knowing the circumstances we can’t say that the Western Balkans is still a top priority of the EU.
- How do you evaluate the enlargement report published by the EU Commission for 2022?
The European Union’s executive arm offered encouragement and criticism to Balkan countries aspiring to membership of the bloc, holding out the prospect of candidate status for Bosnia and Herzegovina but criticizing elements of governance in Montenegro and Albania. And the EU stated that Serbia should as a matter of priority establish a government, firmly committed to the EU’s strategic direction and reform path. So how would you interpret the EU’s latest enlargement report, in which all these details were highlighted?
Saying it in general, the latest enlargement report by European Commission shows that we are still in the early stages of EU integration, and we still have a lot to do. The EU enlargement process I think should not be just a matter of procedures, it should be a common European feeling, they (the EU) should help us to move forward in these matters faster because most of the Balkan states believe in EU values more than most of the member states of the Community. I hope that a comprehensive legally binding normalization agreement with Serbia will show real steps forward on our path toward the EU. It is in our interest to move toward the EU as a package of Balkan states because the influence of Russia from 2010 onwards is more present with a direct impact on elections and politics of Balkan states.
- Although the EU announced that Kosovo, which has been waiting for visa liberalization for a long time, fulfilled all the criteria, it postponed this decision until 2023. How would you evaluate the decision, which was described as a disappointment by Kosovo?
It was a big disappointment for us because there are more than 6 years that we are expecting for visa liberalization, although we have fulfilled all the criteria. This shows that it is a pure politic decision of the EU. I think they are using this as part of the agreement between Pristina and Belgrade. These should be considered as two different processes. The people of Kosovo need to experience the European feeling through visa liberalization because we believe in European values.
- The EU also called on Kosovo and Serbia to implement the agreements reached as part of the bilateral dialogue on the normalization of relations. Despite this, tensions continue to rise between the two countries due to license plates. What do you think about this?
I hope that tensions will not rise. Under these circumstances, the decision by the Government of Kosovo should be in full accordance with the United States and Quint state’s opinion. There are around 28 military bases of the Serbian army on the border with Kosovo and the influence of Russia in Serbian politics is still very big. That’s why we need wise and soft politics to manage the situation there. I think we should consider postponing the deadline but not indefinitely and during that time to make real steps forward. The agreements reached in the dialogue should be implemented and respected if they are in full accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Kosovo.
Dr. Rilind Berisha
He is an Assistant Professor at Zeka University, Faculty of Law. His areas of expertise; are international relations, public international law, and EU law. In the past, he worked as the Vice-Chancellor for International Relations at Universum University and as a project assistant at the Brussels-based Association Focus Europe. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the South East European University (SEEU) in North Macedonia.
