Curcic: EU enlargement to the Western Balkans linked to the "Eastern Partnership"

Petar Curcic, a researcher at the Institute for European Studies, states that the issue of EU enlargement to the Western Balkans is tied to the security and economic challenges within the Union, as well as the focus the new European administration will place on the "Eastern Partnership," specifically Moldova, Ukraine, and Georgia.

"The question of enlargement will depend on Europe's global relations, primarily with the Eastern Partnership. We're talking about Moldova, Ukraine, and Georgia. Without that enlargement, it seems there won't be any for the Western Balkans either. We'll see if Western Balkan countries manage to join this process," Curcic said to Kosovo Online.

He explained that the EU's new approach will require not only administrative changes within the Union but also investments in Serbia and other Western Balkan countries.

"It seems to me that this new approach will demand not only administrative changes and, of course, some alignment with enlargement policies but also investments that should be directed not just toward Serbia as the most important Western Balkan country, but also toward other Western Balkan nations," Curcic stated.

He added that unresolved "technical issues" remain a problem.

"Of course, there are a number of technical issues that are still unresolved, such as border disputes, pollution, the rule of law... Migration will also be a focus. We saw the example of the Italian government, which has now signed several important agreements with Albania on migration intake. These are all security-economic challenges that will require joint action," Curcic pointed out.

He emphasized that the future of enlargement will also depend on the overall foreign policy constellation but noted that "the cards will only be laid out" when the new European budget is adopted.

"This will depend on the overall foreign policy constellation, but we must not forget the internal political arrangements. I believe a very important indicator of whether the EU plans new enlargements will be the new budgetary cycle in 2027. The current European administration and the next German government will have a critical mission, which is to determine the foundations of a new financial policy for the functioning of European institutions and, of course, how the European Union will look in the coming years, almost the next decade," Curcic explained.

He cautioned that it is difficult to predict how this strategic change will unfold in practice because it will largely depend on the willingness of political actors.

"It is very difficult at this moment to determine how the processes will evolve in the coming years," Curcic concluded.