Serbia made some progress but needs work in rule of law: EU Commission report

While Belgrade has made some progress in the judiciary, limited progress was made in the rule of law, the fight against corruption, organised crime, and freedom of expression, according to Serbia’s 2023 report, which the EU Commission will officially release on Wednesday.

“Belgrade must cooperate in investigating the Banjska case and implement agreements reached in the dialogue with Pristina. The level of alignment with the EU’s foreign policy has improved. Still, no restrictive measures have been imposed against Russia, and “some actions and statements by Serbia have been contrary to EU foreign policy positions.”

In the document, the Commission also assesses that Serbia is engaged in the dialogue on normalisation with Pristina but needs to demonstrate a more serious commitment to normalising relations. It also calls for participation of Kosovo Serbs in elections that should be held in the north of Kosovo.

In the area of public administration reform, there is a moderate level of readiness for EU membership. Limited progress has been achieved in the fight against corruption, and the adoption of a national anti-corruption strategy and accompanying action plan is pending.

Limited progress has been made in the fight against organised crime, particularly in detecting and preventing migrant smuggling and human trafficking. Serbia received a mixed assessment for freedom of expression.

“The police and prosecution quickly responded to several cases of attacks and threats, working with the permanent working group for the safety of journalists. However, cases of threats, intimidation, hate speech, and violence against journalists continue to be concerning,” the report states.

The Commission notes that Serbia has continued implementing a media strategy, anticipating that “new laws will strengthen the independence of the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM) and codify the role of the Press Council.”

However, according to the Commission, the legislative process is not fully completed per EU legislation and standards, especially regarding media ownership, state aid rules, and mechanisms for protecting pluralism and editorial independence.

Political and economic influences on the media remain concerning, and Serbia needs to take urgent measures to counter anti-EU narratives propagated by numerous media outlets, especially in the context of Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine.”

Serbia has a good level of preparedness in the economic field and has made “certain” progress in the past year.

“After the growth in the year following the end of the pandemic, the economy slowed down due to the war in Ukraine, particularly evident through inflation and rising prices of food and energy. Progress has been made in introducing new fiscal rules and maintaining the banking sector’s stability, although borrowing has significantly slowed down,” it is stated.

(Euractiv.rs | Jelena Nikolić)

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