Conflicting assessments
The Belgrade parliament last month voted through a series of amendments loosening controversial laws passed at the beginning of the year by the ruling partywhich legal experts said will undermine the independence of the judiciary and the fight against corruption. On top of that, officials point to nearly two dozen legislative changes that have been passed to comply with EU law, including strengthening EU financial management and aligning with the union’s internal market.
Yet the evaluations of the Commission itself seem to point in different directions. In an internal briefing paper circulated among ambassadors ahead of Wednesday’s meeting and seen by POLITICO, the Commission said that “Serbia has recently implemented important aspects of the commitments” it has made to Brussels. In summary, “following these steps the Commission assesses that Serbia has corrected the setbacks that occurred” when the rules were first introduced in January and their application should move forward.
However, a few weeks earlier, in a secret report on Serbia obtained by POLITICOThe commission reported serious human rights concerns, warning that “pressure on civil society and journalists increased, including smear campaigns against individuals and organizations defending the rule of law and the fight against corruption.”
The analysis found that “there has been no progress in a number of serious corruption cases,” including in the investigation into the collapse of the Novi Sad railway station canopy that killed 16 people and sparked a nationwide protest movement.
Without a decision to open the cluster, the Commission will instead turn to other ways to reward Belgrade for legal changes, two officials said. Leaders are preparing a list of optionsalthough it is unlikely to be presented before nationwide elections expected in the coming months after President Aleksandar Vučić’s surprise announcement that he will resign. He is expected to campaign to become the prime minister.
“We remain fully committed to pursuing further reforms and will be encouraged to see these efforts recognized through a merit-based decision,” Marko Đurić, Serbia’s foreign minister, told POLITICO. “In terms of the expansion of Serbia, it is clear that it is beneficial for both sides, it is an act of strategic perspective. It is enough to look at the map.”
“Recently, we have taken important legal and institutional steps to strengthen the rule of law, directly responding to the recommendations of the European Commission,” he said.
