Belgium (Brussels Morning Newspaper) Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob suggested the EU should develop a sort of staggered incentives programme for Western Balkans countries currently working on their EU membership, arguing that the current, stalled expansion process is leading the citizens of those countries to lose interest in the accession.
Golob made his remarks during the meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday, his first official state visit since becoming PM in April this year. While talking about EU enlargement, Golob stressed that the countries in the region have been in the EU “waiting room” for 20 years.
“Unfortunately, this process, the way it has been done, is a process that led to apathy in these countries because it is absolutely too slow,” warned Golob. Speaking in an interview with Reuters after the meeting, Golob clarified his position.
“The problem now is that you only have one goal which is very far in the future so you have to make one huge step before you make any kind of success. That’s not very motivational,” said Golob. “If we can just cut it into small steps and let each country see that there is something for it then it’s very easy to convince other countries that they do those same steps.”
Most Western Balkans countries – Serbia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina – have seen the public enthusiasm for joining the EU wane in their countries, with recent polls in Serbia indicating public support now at less than half of all voters.
Ever since the most recent new member – Croatia – joined the European Union in 2013, the enlargement process has effectively all but stalled. Serbia has gone the furthest along in the accession negotiations, but its close ties to Moscow in view of the war in Ukraine are likely to halt the process for the foreseeable future, especially as Belgrade refuses to follow EU common foreign policy and impose sanctions against Russia.
