Ylva Johansson (BETAPHOTO/NENAD PETROVIC/DS)
Belgrade’s visa regime was strongly criticized by the European Union’s interior ministers at an Oct. 14 meeting and European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson said that if Serbia failed to align its policy with the Union’s, the EU's visa-free regime might be suspended for Serbian citizens.
The EU has accused Belgrade of having contributed to an increase in the number of migrants travelling to the Union via the Western Balkans. “I hope that Serbia and other Western Balkan partners will work with us and align their visa regimes with the Union’s,” the commissioner said.
Serbian citizens are not required to possess visas for travel in the EU, but the Union insists that alignment with its visa regime is necessary. If Serbia fails to meet this requirement, the EU could decide to suspend the exemption system for its citizens.
More than 106,000 irregular entries from the Western Balkan route into the EU have been recorded over the past nine months – a 170% increase compared to the same period last year, the EU Frontex agency reported. “Many of them had to be sent back to their countries of origin, but we also need to ensure that the new trend be stopped,” the European commissioner explained.
To get full access to all content of interest see our
Subscription offer
Or
Register for free
And read up to 5 articles each month.
Already have an account? Please Log in.