The Western Balkans remains politically unstable, with its leaders increasingly demonstrating their inadequacy in meeting the challenges of the European integration process. Although the current geopolitical constellation favours EU enlargement, the lack of genuine political will and accountability in the region could slow down or even halt the European path. This was the conclusion of the latest episode of Citizen’s Angle, a programme by the Centre for Civic Education (CCE) aired on TVE. The guests of Zvezdana Kovač, CCE’s Director for Strategy and Communications, included Srđa Darmanović, professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences at the University of Montenegro and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vlado Bučkovski, former Prime Minister of North Macedonia, Branka Latinović, former Serbian ambassador to the OSCE, and Lejla Ramić-Mesihović, Head of the Department for International Relations and European Studies at the International Burch University in Sarajevo.
Reflecting on the future of European integration in the region amid rising authoritarian tendencies, Branka Latinović expressed her belief that the process will continue, though at a slower pace. “Whether there will be a formal halt, in the sense of official statements from EU institutions or another relevant body, is a matter of assessment and determination. The EU today is neither decisive enough nor united, and decision-making is much more difficult than before”, she said. She pointed to the complexity of the modern context and recalled the example of the Višegrad Group. “That was an excellent model, and it was a major mistake that the EU did not apply the same approach to the Western Balkans. For example, during EU negotiations, Slovakia was under the authoritarian rule of Vladimir Mečiar, and the European Commission halted the talks. After a change in government, Slovakia caught up with the other Visegrád countries within a year, and all four were admitted at the same time. Today, Slovakia is one of the best examples of the benefits of EU membership”, she explained.
“The new political government in Montenegro has, at least rhetorically, introduced a new concept that emphasizes leadership while relying on democratic methods, compromise, and prioritizing European integration. However, as we see, it’s going rather slowly”, said Srđa Darmanović in response to how much Montenegro has capitalized on the support it has received from the EU. He reminded that Montenegro is governed by a coalition of seven different parties, and although the Prime Minister and his party strongly advocate for EU integration, parts of the government are taking steps in the opposite direction. “The Prime Minister is, I would say, Brussels’ favourite and expectations of him are high. The government is trying to meet the standards, but relations with Croatia have significantly deteriorated – not by accident, but deliberately”, Darmanović stated.
On the observation that North Macedonia was once the regional leader in European integration but lost momentum due to disputes with Greece and later Bulgaria, Vlado Bučkovski assessed the 2006 change of government cost the country dearly. “Instead of waiting for 2008 to join NATO alongside Croatia and Albania in Bucharest, we began provoking the Greeks, reverting to ancient history and sparking nationalist euphoria that led to a blockade,” said Bučkovski, adding that Macedonia lost ten years during which the EU was neither a popular topic nor a priority. “Only with the arrival of Zoran Zaev in 2017, who had the political courage to negotiate and sign the Prespa Agreement, did we regain hope for a breakthrough. But instead of launching accession negotiations, we were only rewarded with NATO membership,” he recalled. “The lack of leadership within the EU also came at a high cost. Meanwhile, Bulgaria took over the role of the new blocker, using bilateral demands as leverage. I sincerely hope that Montenegro will seize its opportunity and become an EU member by 2028. If not, it risks being excluded from the next enlargement round,” Bučkovski warned.
Lejla Ramić-Mesihović noted that Bosnia and Herzegovina faces “two parallel dynamics – political and procedural,” which are often in conflict. She highlighted the importance of long-term planning, citing Chapter 27 on environmental protection, which requires significant investment and only yields results after about ten years. “In B&H, quick results are often expected, which is not possible in this process”, she stated. “Also, it must be remembered that B&H’s Constitution was designed to stop war, not to facilitate European integration. This constitutional framework now hinders political coordination and contributes to tensions at all levels of government. That is why it would be extremely important for Montenegro to join the EU. It would send a strong message to the entire region and encourage others to move forward”, Ramić-Mesihović believes.
“As someone who strongly supports regional cooperation and a different approach to neighbours, I believe that Montenegro’s progress would be extremely beneficial for everyone. If the projection that Montenegro will close negotiations by 2028 and join the EU with Albania by 2030 is realized, that would be a huge success. It seems that a political decision has already been made for Ukraine to join the EU as part of a future peace settlement. If that happens, it could create space for Macedonia as well. But if this opportunity is missed, I fear that B&H, Kosovo, Macedonia, and even Serbia will remain outside the process”, said Darmanović.
“The biggest progress in EU integration in the region occurred when leftist, centre-left, or centrist parties were in power because they had strong personnel and political capacity”, stated Branka Latinović, citing specific phases of progress in EU integration under the rule of such parties.
“Bulgaria and Romania received candidate status and EU membership through political decisions, even though their they were a level or two behind all the Western Balkan countries”, said Bučkovski, to which Darmanović added that it would be excellent for Montenegro to join the EU at any point. “Many EU member states, aside from the founders, were not in great shape when they joined, and the Union transformed them: Greece, Spain, Portugal, the Visegrád countries. Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia – these are no longer the same countries they were before joining the EU”, he explained, emphasizing that it would be extremely important for Montenegro to join the EU as soon as possible. Still, he expressed concern that it may not happen soon. “We will enter the EU if the EU takes us there, rather than us demonstrating spectacular results ourselves”, he asserted.
Ramić-Mesihović pointed to the importance of the expert community in the region. “That community does not need to be visible but should be utilized. Unfortunately, our politicians often act as political opportunists – when you are an opportunist, you believe you know everything and are entitled to an opinion on everything. This undermines the need for experts, as everything becomes about short-term political gain”, she said.
Srđa Darmanović echoed this sentiment, noting that in Montenegro, expert input is only partially used, and that the society is highly partitocratic. “Everything revolves around parties, which I don’t necessarily view negatively, as democracy requires strong parties – but the problem arises when they monopolize the process and lack responsibility. Experts are then selectively used – only during election campaigns or to cover up problems, not as a regular principle”, he explained, adding that ministries are often “feudalized” with each party appointing their own people to departments. He also clarified that politics is not the same as running a company or engaging in market operations, and that governing a small country is difficult, with time being a critical but often underestimated factor.
“We are living through a crisis of democracy globally. Authoritarian populist leaders have taken up so much space on the international stage that even a perfect leader in a small country would struggle. Additionally, we are seeing a trend of autocratization in the region. Our leaders often try to come out clean from every issue, and that’s simply not possible”, said Darmanović.
“Citizens want the entire region to join the EU—if for no other reason than when they look at the numbers. From 2024 to 2027, the Western Balkan states are set to share 7 billion euros under the Reform Agenda. In contrast, Bulgaria and Romania will have access to 41 billion euros in the same period ”, concluded Bučkovski.
The full episode is available at the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_PdWvKnuUk
This episode was produced as part of CCE’s project “Europeanization through Citizen’s Angle,” supported by the SMART Balkan Regional Programme – Civil Society for a Connected Western Balkans, implemented by the Centre for Civil Society Promotion (CPCD), the Centre for Research and Policy Making (CRPM), and the Institute for Democracy and Mediation (IDM), with financial support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Norway. The content of the show is the sole responsibility of CCE and the guest, and does not necessarily reflect the views of CPCD, CRPM, IDM, or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Norway.
Maja Marinović, Program Associate