Joksimovic: EU countries are appointing envoys for the Western Balkans because it is central to the idea of future enlargement

Director of the Center for Foreign Policy and former Serbian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Aleksandra Joksimovic, tells Kosovo Online that it is very important for the European Union to continue the enlargement process, and since the Western Balkans is at the center of the idea of future expansion, it is no surprise that more and more European countries are appointing special envoys for this region.

“It is very important to push the Western Balkans forward along the path of further integration, and this is also connected to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and attempts to curb Russian influence in the Western Balkans. It is precisely EU countries that are sending special envoys,” Joksimovic stated.

She noted that the change of the envoy for this region in the United Kingdom came as a result of a change in government, and that the role is now held by career diplomat Karen Pierce, whose duties will include organizing the Berlin Process meeting this year in London, which the UK remains a part of.

Joksimovic explained that for countries dealing with global issues, that is, those with diplomacies active around the world where foreign ministers can’t give every topic the attention they would like, it is important to have an “intermediary step,” meaning a special adviser who coordinates the work of ambassadors in the region.

“There is a two-way direction of action here – the government has someone who sends clear messages to various countries in the region and, in turn, someone who gathers different opinions on individual topics from the region and brings them back to their capital for further consideration and decisions regarding their stance on the region,” she said.

According to Joksimovic, envoys also pay close attention to the economic aspect of cooperation with the region, as politics and economics are intertwined, and work is also being done on cultural ties.

“Everything that diplomacy usually entails is also part of the function and role of a special envoy, who views a particular area through the unified lens of their country’s policies,” Joksimovic emphasized.