Joksimovic: Marta Kos sent a clear message to Belgrade that EU enlargement is a priority for the European Commission

Director of the Center for Foreign Policy and former Serbian ambassador to the United Kingdom, Aleksandra Joksimovic, stated that the two-day visit of European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos to Serbia should be interpreted as her desire to get acquainted with the new administration in Belgrade, as well as to send a clear message that EU enlargement is a priority for the current composition of the European Commission.

“EU enlargement is certainly a priority for the European Commission and its current composition. They emphasized this at the very beginning of their term. The geopolitical situation is such that this is important for the overall security of Europe. They will insist on what they have promised, that at least one country will join the EU by the end of their mandate, that is, by 2030,” Joksimovic said for Kosovo Online.

She reminded that there are currently several countries considered “favorites.”

“Montenegro is in the lead, Albania is trying to catch up. Unfortunately, Serbia has fallen off the list of favorites in this context due to several issues burdening the accession negotiations. One is the issue of relations with Russia, that is, aligning with the EU’s common foreign and security policy, and the other is the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina,” Joksimovic clarified.

She emphasized that the part of Kos’s statement about the possibility of Serbia joining the EU should be interpreted as encouragement.

“But we must wait and see whether there will be any concrete progress, because we know that for several years now, there have been no concrete steps in the process itself. The opening of Cluster 3 would be symbolically significant. It wouldn’t be a spectacular step forward, but it would represent a breakthrough in the current blockage that has existed on Serbia’s path to European integration for quite some time,” she explained.

Asked why the Belgrade–Pristina dialogue was not a topic of discussion, Joksimovic said it will be a focus for the EU’s new High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas.

“Sorenson, as the new EU special envoy, is under her authority. On the other hand, until the election cycle in Pristina is completed with the formation of a new government, it seems we cannot expect any significant progress on this issue. That’s why it is not currently the focus of the EU in terms of further steps, they are waiting for the primary conditions to be met in order for the dialogue to even resume,” Joksimovic emphasized.