EU candidate countries should not expect membership soon, Serbia's Vucic says

BELGRADE, July 7 - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic expressed scepticism on Tuesday about a swift expansion of the European Union, saying he is not optimistic that aspiring new members, including Serbia, will join the bloc in the near future.

Speaking at a conference of EU candidate countries, Vucic said that while the European path remains the best option for the Western Balkans, Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, a major enlargement of the bloc should not be expected anytime soon.

"We ... should not expect miracles or major EU enlargements in the coming years," Vucic said.

The Western Balkans is comprised of Serbia, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia, North Macedonia and Kosovo, which all aspire to join the EU.

Only Montenegro hopes to join the EU by 2028, and Albania has also accelerated its accession bid. Serbia, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Kosovo lag behind.

Ruslan Stefanchuk, Ukraine’s parliament speaker, who co-hosts the event along with his Serbian counterpart Ana Brnabic, said the EU should accelerate accession to prevent Russia's aggressive policies.

"The new wave of enlargement must be as wide and as strong as possible, so that the process of creating Europe can finally be completed — a Europe that is united and indivisible, a Europe that is strong and invulnerable," he said.

Ukraine opened the first phase of membership talks with the European Union last month, but while Kyiv enjoys strong support from European governments for its reforms, diplomats expect Ukraine’s bid to be complex and lengthy.

Belgrade supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity and has condemned Russia's invasion, while Kyiv refuses to recognise the 2008 independence of Kosovo, Serbia's former southern province.

Serbia also maintains ties with Russia, but relations soured after Moscow criticised Serbia last year over its sales of ammunition to Ukraine.

Vucic has also met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on several occasions and travelled to a conference in Odesa last year.

Moldova and Georgia are both aspiring to join EU, having been granted candidate status in June 2022 amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. REUTERS