European Parliament’s Rapporteur for Serbia: Serbia Has Become a Brake on EU Enlargement

Tonino Picula (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV)

Serbia has shifted from being a potential driving force of European Union (EU) enlargement to one of the chief obstacles holding the process back, European Parliament rapporteur for Serbia Tonino Picula said on July 10.

Picula spoke for Croatia’s N1 television after the European Parliament passed his report on Serbia’s progress on its path to the European Union, in which he warned that Serbia’s EU accession has slowed down considerably, with several areas showing outright regression.  

The Croatian member of the European Parliament said interest in enlargement policy is growing among lawmakers, particularly in relation to Serbia. A large number of members sought to contribute to the report, he said, reflecting the importance they attached to a country long regarded as having the greatest potential to advance toward EU membership. “Unfortunately, that hasn’t been happening for years. Instead of being the motor of the enlargement process, Serbia has become the brakes on it,” Picula said.

He noted that Serbia could not be assessed separately from its influence on the region, particularly on Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Kosovo.

“We tried to reconcile the geopolitical importance of enlargement policy with the actual situation on the ground, relying on the European Commission’s report presented late last year by Commissioner Marta Kos. Its assessments were highly critical of the Serbian authorities,” Picula said, adding that the Commission called Serbia’s progress toward membership into question in May, but later changed its tone under the influence of certain member states seeking to keep Serbia within the EU’s political orbit, namely France and Germany.