The Western Balkan countries – Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia,
the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Serbia-Montenegro - received
some very strong messages from the European Union Thessaloniki Summit of
June 2003: the prospect of their membership in the EU is real and the EU
map will not be complete without them. On the other hand, the process of
integration, they were told, requires their strong political will and a
lot of hard work. How quickly an individual country will become a member
will depend on its performance in terms of stability, democracy and economic
development. The would-be EU members will also be judged by the extent to
which they have intensified political dialogue both on the domestic and
international level, reformed their legal system, and strengthened regional
cooperation in the fields of transport, energy and environmental protection.
Financial and professional assistance
The EU did not leave its future members to struggle on their own to achieve
these ambitious goals; it provided both financial and professional assistance.
Instruments such as European partnership and mechanisms of adjustment to
the EU’s legislation were made available, and scientific and technical
cooperation was intensified. Since 1991, EUR 7bn has been provided to the
Western Balkan countries, first as a humanitarian aid during the war, and
later for reconstruction and institution building. The EU has become the
largest trade partner of the Western Balkan countries, with over 80% of
all goods from the region entering Europe with no customs restrictions.
A total of EUR 4.6bn will be provided to the region through the CARDS (Community
Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation) programme
between 2000 and 2006. Although some at the Thessaloniki Summit voiced their
fears that the pledged funds were not sufficient, the actual amount remained
an open question.
According to an assessment made by the European Commission (EC), the Western
Balkan countries have made significant progress in the process of association
and stabilisation in terms of increased security and stability, democratic
elections, extensive reconstruction, return of refugees and displaced persons,
sustainable development, curbed inflation, and enhanced trade cooperation.
However, the region still lags behind in building democratic institutions
and ensuring their adequate functioning, in judicial system reforms, fight
against organized crime and corruption, respect of human rights and protection
of minorities. Since crime and corruption represent a particular problem,
the prime ministers of Montenegro, Albania and Macedonia have recently agreed
to form a joint group – representing the three countries’ interior
ministries – to fight crime by facilitating an exchange of information
and boosting border controls.
The Danube River as a cohesive factor
The EC last year completed a Feasibility Study for Albania and started negotiations
on the Agreement on Stabilisation and Association. A similar study has already
been completed for Bosnia-Herzegovina; the one for Serbia-Montenegro should
be completed by the end of March 2004 and immediately followed by negotiations,
which could be over by the end of this year or the beginning of 2005. In
the particular case of Serbia-Montenegro, the process is delayed due to
the complex post-war situation in the country, economic backwardness and
problems related to Kosovo. However, significant results have been achieved
in terms of regional cooperation and good neighbourly relations, said Dusko
Lopandic, a senior official of the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Lopandic, Director of Directorate for the EU, highlighted the agreement
on free trade concluded with all neighbouring countries and the Memorandum
on Southeastern Europe electricity market as positive examples. Other successful
stories concern EU-supported projects to connect the Balkan transport corridors
with trans- European highway network. But there are still many shortcomings,
said Lopandic, in terms of institutional reorganization, Kosovo situation
and inclusion of Serbia-Montenegro into the Schengen countries’ “white
list”.
The Serbian Minister for the Protection of Resources and the Environment,
Andjelka Mihajlov, sees the Danube River as a cohesive factor between Western
Balkan countries and the EU, and within the enlarged EU. In this sense,
the implementations of the International Convention for the Protection of
the Danube River and the General Agreement for the Sava River have an important
role to play.