Joksimovic: European leaders in Tirana focused on security, which includes EU enlargement

The Director of the Center for Foreign Policy and former Serbian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Aleksandra Joksimovic, says that the themes of the European Political Community summit held yesterday in Tirana were focused on what currently occupies Europe the most – security, economy, and migration – with particular emphasis on security, especially regarding the situation in Ukraine, and that another important topic was the Western Balkans and EU enlargement.

Considering the attempted negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, organized in Istanbul, Joksimovic notes that many of the guests in Tirana focused their discussions on the potential outcome of those talks.

The topic of the Western Balkans and EU enlargement, she emphasizes, falls within the realm of security, which is currently crucial for the European Union as it seeks to fully consolidate its borders. In Tirana, she adds, encouraging messages were heard in the context of the EU’s renewed focus on the enlargement process, which was primarily expressed during the establishment of the current European Commission.

“I would say that the EU will insist that a new enlargement takes place by the end of the current Commission’s mandate. At this moment, the frontrunners for enlargement are Montenegro and Albania, and this was confirmed at the summit. Serbia was among the favorites, but at this point has slipped due to various issues related to the rule of law and alignment with the EU’s common foreign and security policy. We also heard that there is a possibility for Serbia to make certain steps forward in the near future that could bring it back into a better position in this process. That would be encouraging news – there is still a possibility for Serbia to join those countries that have a real chance of being among the next EU member states,” Joksimovic told Kosovo Online.

She reminded that the European Political Community was initiated during the Russian aggression on Ukraine and was proposed by French President Emmanuel Macron.

“It has an undefined framework in the sense that it has no secretariat and not many formalities. Leaders are eager to attend this format – this year, no one declined the invitation. The usual format is that one summit is held in an EU country and the next outside the EU. This was the first time the European Political Community was organized in Tirana, in the Western Balkans, and the location itself sends an important message,” Joksimovic emphasized.

In addition to the thematic discussions held at three roundtables by European leaders, many bilateral meetings also took place. Joksimovic notes that such meetings, as a complementary part of major summits, are always welcome.

“There is often an opportunity for informal conversations that may not lead to immediate solutions but can lead to information exchange and the planning of future activities of mutual benefit, or clarification of issues that may have remained unresolved in previous encounters. So, in that context, it is definitely very good to think about who leaders will be able to talk to one-on-one on certain topics, without excessive formality,” Joksimovic stated.