MEPs called on the Serbian authorities on Wednesday 6 July to put the country back on track for EU integration.
The report by Vladimír Bilčík (EPP, Slovakia), which the European Parliament adopted (523 votes in favour, 78 against and 34 abstentions), welcomes the fact that EU membership continues to be Serbia’s strategic goal, but regrets the lack of progress, or even backtracking, on issues fundamental to EU membership.
MEPs call for concrete results in the areas of the rule of law, fundamental rights, freedom of expression and the media, the fight against corruption and disinformation, and the functioning of democratic institutions and public administration.
The European Parliament also reiterates the importance of constructive engagement by the Serbian and Kosovar authorities to reach a comprehensive and legally binding normalisation agreement “based on mutual recognition”. It also calls for all agreements between Belgrade and Pristina to be respected and fully implemented “in good faith and in a timely manner”.
MEPs also regret that Serbia has not aligned itself with EU sanctions against Russia, calling on the country to do so quickly and unreservedly. They also call on Belgrade to step up its efforts to diversify its energy supply and overall energy mix, in particular to reduce its dependence on Russia.
See the report: https://aeur.eu/f/2i4 (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)