BELGRADE — European Council President Antonio Costa stated on Thursday that the European Union will seek new methods to accelerate the membership process for six Western Balkan candidate countries at an upcoming summit. The summit is scheduled for Friday in Tivat, Montenegro, convening European leaders alongside officials from the aspirant nations.
Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Montenegro have applied for EU membership and are currently undergoing a merit-based accession process. The EU has pursued policy reforms in candidate nations to counter perceived increases in Russian and Chinese influence.
Costa visited Western Balkan candidate nations on Thursday prior to attending the summit in Montenegro. Costa advised Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic that his administration must expand democratic reforms and synchronize its foreign policy with the EU to advance its membership candidacy, stating, "But let me be clear, the pace of progress depends on Serbia’s own resolve." Serbian authorities have been informed that the country risks forfeiting approximately 1.5 billion euros in EU funding if it does not improve judicial and democratic standards. The EU has also directed Serbia to enhance media independence and guarantee free and fair electoral conditions.
Serbia maintains diplomatic relations with Russia and China and has not implemented sanctions against Russia in response to the war in Ukraine. "The enlargement is not a utopia but it is something that could be real in the coming years." Costa said. "For this we need to work harder and faster."
Montenegro and Albania hold the most advanced positions in the Western Balkan EU accession process. Full EU membership requires candidate countries to align their legislation across 35 policy chapters covering sectors such as justice, agriculture, and fisheries. Each of the 27 EU member states must provide unanimous approval to open and close every accession chapter.
The EU has mandated that Serbia and Kosovo normalize diplomatic relations before their membership applications can proceed. Kosovo functioned as a Serbian province until a 1999 NATO military intervention concluded a conflict between Serbian security forces and ethnic Albanian separatists. Serbia does not recognize Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence.
Vucic stated on Thursday that he will pursue reforms and maintain Serbia's path toward EU integration. He has recently encountered youth-led street demonstrations that originated in November 2024 following a train station accident in northern Serbia that resulted in 16 fatalities.
No independent assessment of European Union’s claims was available.