Brussels, 26/04/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 25 April, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini congratulated Serbia's Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic on the result of the parliamentary elections in his country the previous day. According to the Serbian electoral commission, Vucic's Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) obtained around 48% of the vote, coming ahead of the Socialist Party (SPS) (around 11%) and the Radical Party (SRS, far right) (around 8%). The SNS is expected to obtain 131 of the 150 seats in the parliament.
In a press release, Mogherini stated along with European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn that the elections at national, regional and local levels had taken place “in a calm atmosphere”. “Serbian citizens showed strong support for their country's strategic objectives to join the EU. They entrusted the winning Serbian Progressive Party and its leader, Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, with a great responsibility”, Mogherini and Hahn stated.
Mogherini and Hahn added that they looked forward to working with the new government in order to consolidate Serbia's progress towards joining the EU. They also said they looked forward to the parliament being constituted “in good time”.
Stating that Belgrade had taken important steps on the EU path, with the opening of the first negotiation chapters in 2015 (see EUROPE 11454), Mogherini and Hahn said they were “confident that Serbia will build on this progress with renewed commitment to reforms, in particular on rule of law and the economy, and continued engagement in the dialogue” with Kosovo. In their view, the recommendations of the international electoral observers are “important guidance for Serbia, also in the context of its path to the European Union”.
European Parliament President Martin Schulz congratulated Vucic on his re-election, saying this was a “strong signal for continued European integration and for the process of reforms”. He nevertheless added that the country should take note of the comments from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) regarding the elections.
According to the OSCE, although voters made their choices freely, and the candidates campaigned transparently, media coverage supported the parties in power and there was a lack of transparency in how the parties and campaign were funded. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)