Photo: S. Hermann/F. Richter on PixabaySerbia's compliance rate with the European Union's foreign policy has "significantly decreased". From 64 percent in 2020, it has now fallen to 45 percent. The rating is not much better in other areas either
In the draft of the European Commission's annual report on Serbia, which will be published tomorrow, and which Radio Free Europe (RSE) had access to, it is underlined that Serbia has not complied with the sanctions on Russia that the European Union introduced to Moscow in response to the aggression in Ukraine.
"Serbia's series of actions and statements contradicted the EU's foreign policy position. "Serbia is expected to fulfill its obligations as a priority and progressively align itself with the EU's restrictive measures in accordance with Serbia's negotiating framework," the document states.
Regional cooperation
As for regional cooperation, the report on Serbia assesses that the country remains committed to improving bilateral relations. However, it is mentioned that relations with Croatia are "increasingly strained with occasional political conflicts", and Serbia's relations with Montenegro are assessed as "challenging", but it is emphasized that both sides have indicated a greater willingness to reset relations and efforts to resolve open issues .
A special paragraph refers to the process of normalization of relations between Belgrade and Pristina, where it is estimated that there is no concrete progress in the negotiations on a comprehensive and legally binding agreement, so Belgrade and Pristina are invited to "without further delay" engage constructively and advance negotiations on a comprehensive, legally binding agreement on normalization. Achieving such an agreement is "urgent and crucial", the report states, so that Kosovo and Serbia can progress on the European path.
Corruption and crime
Regarding the fight against corruption, according to the findings of the European Commission, it is emphasized that Serbia has made only "limited progress". In this connection, it is mentioned that the number of new investigations and final judgments increased in 2021 compared to the previous year, but that the number of first-instance indictments fell. It is stated that Serbia should strengthen the prevention and suppression of corruption and increase the final confiscation of assets in high-profile cases.
Serbia also received a bad rating in the fight against organized crime, where it is said that only "limited progress" has been made. It is mentioned that in the past period, the number of new investigations and final verdicts increased, but that the number of indictments and first-instance verdicts decreased. It is also said that the number of seizures and final confiscations is limited. It is acknowledged that the level of understanding and approach to confiscation has improved which, the report says, should lead to better results in the future.
Freedom of speech
No progress has been recorded in freedom of expression, according to the European Commission's report on Serbia. In the report, the experts of the Commission underline that the cases of threats and violence against journalists are worrisome and emphasize that the unhindered exercise of freedom of expression should be further strengthened in practice.
In the chapter related to fundamental rights, a large part is devoted to the organization of "Europride" in Serbia on September 17 and recalls that the holding of the event was uncertain until the last moment. In this regard, it is estimated that the authorities' communication regarding this manifestation was "contradictory". "While the authorities maintained contacts with the organizers in order to find some kind of solution, they remained non-committal regarding the holding of the parade with an official permit," according to the European Commission's report on Serbia.
The enlargement package together with separate reports for each country should be adopted by the European Commission's collegium.
MN/FoNet
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