Commissioner for Enlargement Olivér Várhelyi highlighted the progress made by the Western Balkan countries, while underlining the efforts that remain to be made, at the presentation of the enlargement reports on Tuesday 19 October.
The reports cover the four candidate countries in the region - Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia; the two potential candidates - Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo; and Turkey, which is also a candidate but whose negotiations are frozen.
“There is progress everywhere”, the Commissioner told MEPs on the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, while pointing out that, for those countries for which negotiations are suspended, the suspension is due to the fact that there has been no progress.
Speaking to the media, Mr Várhelyi said it is “imperative to ensure credibility and to breathe new life into the accession process”. He added that if the countries carried out the requested reforms, the EU should also keep its promises. “Albania and North Macedonia continue to meet the conditions for opening accession negotiations, and both countries have made steady progress towards EU reforms”, underline the European Commission’s reports.
Thus, according to Mr Várhelyi, the delay in opening their accession negotiations “has a negative impact on the EU’s credibility”. The conflict between Bulgaria and North Macedonia “must be resolved urgently”, he said. The Commissioner said it was crucial that Member States adopt the negotiating boxes for both countries, again hoping that the first intergovernmental conferences could be held before the end of the year.
Mr Várhelyi also stressed the need for the normalisation of relations between Serbia and Kosovo, while tensions on the border remain high (see EUROPE 12802/11). The European Commission warns in its reports that both countries need to make further substantial efforts to implement all past agreements and to contribute to the conclusion of a comprehensive legally binding agreement. “Such an agreement is urgent and crucial for Kosovo and Serbia to move forward on their respective European paths”, the institution said.
See the European Commission’s communication (in French): https://bit.ly/3AXkxLc
Montenegro. According to the European Commission, the country, which has opened all of its EU accession negotiation chapters, must first and foremost fulfil the interim criteria in terms of the Rule of law, as otherwise no further chapters can be closed. The European Commission considers that the authorities need to demonstrate in practice their commitment to Montenegro’s EU reform programme. The country still needs to intensify its efforts to address outstanding issues, including in the key areas of freedom of expression, media freedom, and the fight against corruption and organised crime, without reversing the achievements already made in the area of judicial reform.
See the report: https://bit.ly/3lTDkmc
Serbia. For its part, Belgrade must “continue, accelerate and deepen” reforms concerning the independence of the judiciary, the fight against corruption, media freedom, the national treatment of war crimes, and the fight against organised crime. In particular, the European Commission expects the authorities to finalise the constitutional reform process in the area of the judiciary by the end of the year.
Once again, the European Commission calls on Serbia to improve its alignment with the EU’s foreign and security policy.
Serbia’s progress on the Rule of law and normalisation of relations with Kosovo is essential and will determine the overall pace of the accession negotiations, recalls the European Commission, which supports the opening of new clusters of chapters for the accession negotiations (see EUROPE 12747/15).
See the report: https://bit.ly/3AWRt6D
Albania. The country has “achieved tangible and sustainable reforms”, Várhelyi said, pointing to the reform of the judiciary and the structures to fight corruption and organised crime.
The Commissioner also called for continued progress in the prosecution of corruption and organised crime cases, minority rights, and media freedom.
Furthermore, in his view, the April 2021 parliamentary elections were generally well organised (see EUROPE 12707/20).
See the report: https://bit.ly/3vrbLUp
North Macedonia. According to Mr Várhelyi, Skopje has shown determination and made steady progress on its EU-related reform agenda, including on the Rule of law, the fight against corruption, and organised crime. “The country needs to keep up the momentum”, he said.
The Commissioner considered that the fight against corruption should continue and that further efforts should be made regarding the reform of the public administration.
See the report: https://bit.ly/3jgesnc
Bosnia and Herzegovina. The country needs to make progress on the 14 key priorities highlighted by the European Commission, warned Várhelyi, with the report highlighting electoral and constitutional reforms, the Rule of law, and judicial reform. “The country will need to achieve a critical mass of reforms before the Commission can recommend granting candidate status to the country”, the European Commission explains in its report.
While the political environment remains polarised and political leaders continue to engage in divisive rhetoric and unconstructive political wrangling, the Commissioner called for constructive dialogue and political will on all sides.
The marked decrease in the rate of alignment of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the EU’s foreign and security policy is a negative signal, the report also points out.
See the report: https://bit.ly/3phU60o
Kosovo. According to the European Commission, the full and effective implementation of the Reform Action Plan in the coming period will be essential. The Commissioner said that the formation of the new government, which has a clear parliamentary majority, should enable progress on issues such as the fight against corruption and organised crime and strengthen economic development.
The country also continues to meet all the benchmarks for visa liberalisation.
See the report: https://bit.ly/2Z1CmLU
Turkey. While dialogue and cooperation with Turkey intensified in 2021, according to the European Commission’s report, Várhelyi recalled that the country had not credibly addressed the EU’s serious concerns about the Rule of law, fundamental rights, and the independence of the judiciary, which led to the blocking of accession negotiations. “Turkey needs to reverse this negative trend as a matter of priority and address the weakening of the balance of power in the political system”, the European Commission warns in its report. Ankara should also actively support negotiations on a fair, comprehensive and viable settlement of the Cyprus issue within the United Nations’ framework.
The European Commission also recalls that Turkey is a key partner of the EU in key areas of common interest, such as migration, counterterrorism, economy, trade, energy, and transport.
See the report: https://bit.ly/3pc4x5M (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)