Srdjan Majstorovic (Wikimedia/European Western Balkans)
The general context in which the talks on Serbia's accession to the EU are being held will not be favorable in 2021 due to the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, and due to a limited term in office of the executive and legislative branches of government too much enthusiasm for change cannot be expected in Serbia either, chairman of the European Policy Center's Governing Board Srdjan Majstorovic has said.
In a Jan. 5 interview with EurActiv and BETA, Majstorovic said that in 2021 Serbia and the EU would face serious health, economic and social consequences of the pandemic and added that it was important to have realistic expectations and be careful in managing the public's expectations regarding that subject.
Unfortunately, in conditions where the term in office of the executive and legislative government is to last until April 2022, it is unrealistic to expect too much enthusiasm and a charge into change, said Majstorovic, adding that the EU member states no longer believed in promises and that progress in the negotiations would depend solely on concrete and measurable results.
In 2021 the greatest expectations will be focused on the result of an inter-party dialogue on establishing democratic conditions for fair and free elections, Majstorovic believes, and expects that 2021 will see the start of implementation of a new methodology of accession negotiations, but adds that the rule of law and functional institutions will still be the key requisite for progress.
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