EU

Bilateral disputes between European Union member states and candidate countries are one of the key obstacles to EU enlargement. They have been plaguing the EU accession process ever since the breakup of Yugoslavia and the subsequent border dispute between EU member Slovenia and candidate country Croatia which then ensued. More recently we have the case of North Macedonia. It became a candidate country in 2005 but ever since, its accession negotiations have been bogged down by endless bilateral disputes.

Bilateral disputes between European Union member states and candidate countries are one of the key obstacles to EU enlargement. They have been plaguing the EU accession process ever since the breakup of Yugoslavia and the subsequent border dispute between EU member Slovenia and candidate country Croatia which then ensued. More recently we have the case of North Macedonia. It became a candidate country in 2005 but ever since, its accession negotiations have been bogged down by endless bilateral disputes.

The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) organized a panel discussion titled “Serbia and Ukraine: Challenges of War” that gathered experts from Ukraine and Serbia, aiming to discuss the relations between Serbia and Ukraine, pro-Russian narratives and position of Ukraine and the Western Balkans in the European security architecture after the end of the war. Helena Ivanov, an associate research fellow from the Henry Jackson Society, moderated the panel.

In this document, colleagues from the Belgrade Centre for Human Rights analyze the position of the Ombudsman (Protector of Citizens) from the point of view of the attitude of the National Assembly and the Government of the Republic of Serbia toward the Ombudsman’s regular annual reports.

BCSP Researcher Marija Ignjatijević analyses parliamentary oversight of the police in Serbia through the lens of the European integration process and offers recommendations on how to connect it to the negotiating Chapter 24 – Justice, Freedom and Security.

We present the latest prEUgovor Alarm report on the progress of Serbia in Cluster 1.

The study analyses weaknesses of the current EU accession process when it comes to the impact on fundamental reforms in the Western Balkans and offers alternative solutions aiming to maximize the reform potential of the enlargement process.

The topic of this meeting was reporting and discussion on the results of the implementation of the revised Action Plan for Chapter 24. Additionally, both progresses achieved in Chapter 24 and the work on the Draft Law on Internal Affairs were presented. The continuation of the dialogue of the Working Group for Chapter 24 of the National Convention on the European Union (NCEU), which is coordinated by BCSP and the Negotiating Group for Chapter 24, which is coordinated by the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MUP), is planned, including regarding the text of the Draft from the point of view of reaching the transitional criteria in this chapter.

In order to be credible and overcome state capture in the region, the European Union needs to start making decisions on the Western Balkans, to engage more with citizens and internal democratization drivers, and regional actors should have a say in EU-wide debates, it was concluded at the conference “The Lighthouse of a Better Balkans – The first 25 years of the BCSP” held on 27 June at the Metropol Palace Hotel in Belgrade. During the conference organized on the occasion of its 25th anniversary, BCSP formed an International Advisory Committee and presented its members.