Rapporteur: Without Trust, Tangible Reforms, Serbia Cannot Make Progress Toward EU Membership

Without tangible reforms and renewed trust in the relationship with European Union member states, Serbia cannot achieve true progress on its European path, Tonino Picula, the European Parliament’s rapporteur for Serbia, said on Nov. 4.

In an evening post on X, Picula stated that, during the day’s sitting of the EP’s Foreign Affairs Committee (AFET), he personally raised the issue of Serbia – “where parliamentary elections have fundamentally altered the political landscape.”

According to the post, Picula asked EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos – who was presenting a new EU Enlargement Package – whether the regime change could contribute to a turnabout in the Serbia’s foreign policy, particularly with regards to the country’s relations with neighbors and alignment with the Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy.

“Kos replied that the EU is ready to help the new Serbian government in implementing reforms but that it is crucial to repair the damaged trust between Serbia and EU member states, as well as [Serbia’s] citizens’ trust in the Union. Without reforms and renewed trust, there will be no true progress on [Serbia’s] European path,” Picula concluded.