“Negotiations with Serbia will not be frozen,” said the European Parliament’s rapporteur for Serbia, Vladimir Bilčik, noting that it is important for the Serbian authorities to coordinate foreign policy with the European Union.
According to Bilčik, the amendment to the European Parliament’s report on the enlargement of the Union, which makes Serbia’s further progress on the road to the EU conditional on the introduction of sanctions against Russia, does not represent pressure on Belgrade, but the expectation that Serbia confirms its choice for EU membership.
When it comes to chapters, Bilčik believes there is much work to be done within the already open chapters to move forward, including work on Chapter 4 on energy and the environment. He also notes that the EU can help improve air quality in Serbia and the country’s energy transition.
“However, the opening of new chapters and clusters will require very clear decisions from Serbia. In order for the negotiations on Serbia’s membership to really progress, we need a clear signal that Serbia is serious when it talks about its European path and that it is working with us. That’s why alignment with foreign policy is a critical issue,” Bilčik said in an interview for RTS and assessed that it is Europe that can help the citizens of Serbia to achieve a more prosperous future for all citizens, not Russia or China:
“We want Serbia to make the right choice. This is the period when the history of Europe is being written. Russia is losing this war, Europe will win and we want Serbia to be on the side of the winner,” said Bilčik.