Serbia needs to boost EU-Russia dialogue

Serbia needs to boost EU-Russia dialogue

During the 19 discussions held at the three-day Conference, which ended on Thursday, they said that international norms and European values face many challenges and that the European model has been called into question due to the conduct of EU member states, Russia and other international actors.

The participants pointed to the need to find a consensus on a consistent implementation of rules for resolving disputes between states or conceiving new rules.

The EU enlargement remains the policy that best revives European values in practice and it is important to demonstrate the intent of further enlargement towards the Western Balkans in a convincing manner, it was said at the forum, which brought together more than 100 panellists.

The Western Balkans must take initiative and contribute to the debate on the future of the EU, international rules and strengthening of international organisations, according to the conclusions of the forum.

’’The Belgrade Security Forum is an example of such an initiative, whose added value lies in the fact that it has been launched by three civil society organisations - the Belgrade Fund of Political Excellence, the European Movement in Serbia and the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy’’, the organisers said in a statement.

’’With respect to Serbia's upcoming OSCE chairmanship next year, Serbia needs to take initiative in debates concerning the future of Europe, and it can contribute to finding a solution to the crisis by making both the EU and Russia part of the dialogue’’, the statement said.

The Serbian government is expected to demonstrate an approach of partnership in the resolution of European problems, relying on the capabilities offered by Switzerland, the current chair of the OSCE, and Germany, which will take over in 2016.

The Belgrade Security Forum addressed the most pressing issues in regional and international foreign policy, security and economy in a year of significant anniversaries - the centenary of the outbreak of World War I, the 10th anniversary of the major EU enlargement, as well as the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The Conference was held from September 30 through October 2, involving more than 500 politicians and foreign policy and security experts, representatives of civil society organisations and national and international media.