site.btaOutgoing EU Ambassador Urges Serbia to Speed Up Reforms in Key Areas

Emanuele Giaufret, the outgoing Head of the European Union Delegation to Serbia, emphasized that Serbia must accelerate reforms in three key areas — rule of law, media freedom, and anti-corruption — in order to move forward on its path to EU membership.

“Though I am leaving, the European Union remains fully committed to walking side by side with Serbia on its journey toward EU membership,” Giaufret said in a written message released by the EU Delegation in Belgrade.

In his farewell message, published on the delegation’s website, Giaufret, whose mandate ended on July 15, stressed that the principles of human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law, and respect for human rights are the foundation of what the EU stands for. He expressed his belief that these are also the values sought by Serbian citizens.

Giaufret noted that during his tenure, he consistently witnessed the Serbian people's aspiration for these values and underscored the importance of continuing joint efforts in that direction.

In 2021 Giaufret was appointed as the EU’s top diplomat in Serbia.

The reforms he highlighted are part of Cluster 3 in Serbia’s EU accession negotiations, which includes eight chapters. Serbian authorities have expressed hope that this cluster could be officially opened by the end of July.

On Thursday, EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos dismissed the possibility of Serbia opening Cluster 3 of its EU accession negotiations by the end of July, emphasizing the EU's long-standing principle of merit-based progress for candidate countries.

Speaking to journalists in Brussels, Kos said Serbia is making slow progress in the critical area of the rule of law. “A few weeks ago, three media laws were adopted, and work is ongoing on the electoral law and the formation of the Council of the regulatory authority for electronic media. If Serbia fulfills these and other conditions, we could potentially move toward opening Cluster 3 in the fall,” she stated.

Kos also reiterated that normalizing relations with Kosovo remains one of Serbia’s obligations before Cluster 3 can be opened. The cluster includes key chapters related to the rule of law, media freedom, and anti-corruption.

Serbia last opened a negotiating chapter with the EU in December 2021, when it launched Cluster 1 under the revised enlargement methodology introduced in early 2020.

The stagnation in accession talks has largely been attributed to Serbia’s reluctance to align its foreign policy with the EU, particularly its refusal to impose sanctions on Russia following the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.