EU enlargement chief backs Serbian protesters, calls for urgent return to “European track”

The European Union’s enlargement chief, Marta Kos, has backed calls by protesters in Serbia to tackle corruption and boost the rule of law, as she insisted the country get back on track in its bid to join the bloc.

“Serbia has to be brought back on the European track,” Kos said in an interview with the European Newsroom (enr) published on Wednesday. “What we are demanding from Serbia on the way of the EU accession is nearly exactly the same as what the protesters in Serbia are demanding,” she said.

The Balkan nation – which is a candidate country to join the EU – has been rocked by its largest wave of unrest since the 1990s as students have led anti-government demonstrations.

Protests started in November after a deadly roof collapse at a train station sparked an outburst of public anger over deep-rooted corruption. The pressure from the protests led to the resignation of the prime minister and the collapse of the government.

Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić claims the student-led protests are threatening peace and stability, accusing the protesters of being paid by “foreign intelligence agencies”.

This month Vučić proposed a political novice, Đuro Macut, an endocrinologist, to lead the government. Macut has until April 18 to convince parliament to approve a new government. If he fails, Vučić may be forced to call new elections.

Serbia’s accession negotiations at stake

The EU has had a sometimes spiky relationship with Vučić as he has maintained Serbia’s close ties to Russia despite the Ukraine war.

Brussels has warned Belgrade of the risk of damaging its bid for membership, but it is wary of alienating a key country in the volatile Balkan region at a time of deep geopolitical friction.

Meeting Kos and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in March, Vučić promised a media reform and an electoral reform, said Kos.

“If Serbia fulfills this, then of course it will be possible to move forward and open the cluster,” Kos said when asked whether Serbia can expect the opening of at least one cluster for EU accession this year and when it will receive the Interim Benchmark Report (IBAR), which measures an EU candidate’s progress in the area of the rule of law.

Kos said that the EU is also talking to civil society organisations and stated that she had asked Vučić to help them be included in the EU accession process.

“I asked Mr Vučić really not to undermine the work of civil society organisations, but to help them being involved in the accession process,” she said. “And this is a precondition, and we really hope and wish that Serbia will get back on track.”

Kos announced she will visit Belgrade at the end of the month.

This article is published twice a week. The content is based on news by agencies participating in the enr.