Brnabic: Schengen for the Western Balkans strengthens the EU’s borders

The Speaker of the National Assembly of Serbia, Ana Brnabic, stated that the accession of the Western Balkans to Schengen would strengthen European borders and increase the region’s competitiveness, assessing that gradual integration into the EU would be a win-win situation, Newsmax Balkans reports.

Brnabic said this in Prague at the “Globsec 2026” forum, on the panel “Out of the Waiting Room - Rethinking EU Enlargement,” while answering a question about the possibility of joining Schengen before full EU membership.

She stated that such a model would also benefit EU countries that contribute the most to European funds, because, in her assessment, the region’s economy would become more competitive.

“If we became part of the Schengen Area, it would strengthen European borders and increase competitiveness,” Brnabic said, adding that the countries of the region would thereby become wealthier and more independent.

She also assessed that joining the EU under current rules could slow it down and make the Union less competitive and more bureaucratic.

“That is a situation where everyone loses,” Brnabic said, adding that a model of gradual integration is therefore needed.

Brnabic also emphasized that the EU should consider its own reforms, including questions of institutional structure and decision-making efficiency.

Ministers and diplomats from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, and Austria also participated in the panel.

Accession of the Western Balkans to the Schengen Area would bring concrete benefits for citizens and the region’s economy, interlocutors of Kosovo Online said on this topic.

According to them, the movement of people and the flow of goods would be easier, costs would be reduced, and the benefits of European integration would be felt.