According to the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Netherlands Serbia is not ready for the next stage in the accession process. – We observe that there is insufficient progress on the rule of law in Serbia – he said during a press conference Brussels.
– At the same time, we see insufficient progress in relations between Belgrade and Pristina – he added, emphasizing that “Serbia is also responsible for this area.” – We see that Serbia still does not sufficiently adapt its foreign policy to the EU's foreign policy – he pointed out.
The Kosovo issue. “We have to put the pressure on now.”
Officially Serbia does not recognize it Kosovo for a separate state. It is one of the provinces for her. As reported by the NL Times, Caspar Veldkamp intends to highlight the issue during Tuesday's meeting with EU foreign ministers, during which the progress of the candidate countries will be on the agenda.
The Dutch foreign minister wants to convince European governments to take a stand on this issue. – We really want to put pressure on Serbia – he pointed out.
“All EU member states must agree to each stage of the talks for possible accession. Serbia is stuck on the path because it refuses to recognize Kosovo,” says Bloomberg.
Serbia in the European Union? “We expect more”
Veldekamp also drew attention to the issues in his conversation with journalists related to the rule of law. – Looking at the disturbing events on Hungaryand partly also on Slovakiait is logical that we can really impose demands on a candidate Member State in the field of the rule of law – he said.
Serbia applied for EU membership in December 2009. It has had the status of a candidate country since March 2012. Accession negotiations started in January 2014.
The head of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs assessed that other candidate countries did a 'better job' in the field of EU foreign policy. – We expect more steps from Serbia in the coming time – he added.
Bloomberg also reminds that Belgrade refused to join EU sanctions against Russia after launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Moreover, President Aleksandar Vučić has repeatedly “faced questions about the integrity of the elections.”
Source: NL Times, Bloomberg