“Serbia will get EU candidate status”

Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Vincent Degert has expressed expectation that Serbia will get the EU candidate status in the next several weeks. At a conference dubbed “New Regional Policies and European Experiences” in the Serbian parliament Degert said that Serbia was on the right path regarding regional policy but that it still needed to do some work and prepare itself for the next stage once it has received the EU candidate status. “Serbia will get EU candidate status” “When Serbia gets the EU candidate status new funds will open and it will be able to use funds for agriculture and social inclusion, which are the EU priorities,” he explained. Committee of the Regions Working Group on the Western Balkans Chairman Franz Schausberger believes that the European Council made a mistake by not granting Serbia the EU candidate status in December. “The key mistake is the fact that the European Council did not give Serbia the EU candidate status in December,” he pointed out. According to him, Serbia remains “the central force of stability and good regional relations in the Balkans and can be a driving force in this part of Europe”. “The EU needs to give a sign to Serbia on its European pathway,” Schausberger pointed out. Serbian Deputy Prime Minister for Economy and Regional Development Verica Kalanovic has expressed expectation that Serbia will get the EU candidate status in the next few weeks and stressed that the country has made great progress in the EU accession process in the last decade. She recalled the EU officials’ assessments that Serbia was ready for the EU candidacy and that it was a mistake that the European Council did not grant the country the candidate status in December. Commenting on regional development in Serbia, Kalanovic noted that a centralized system had been created in the last 50 years which had created great differences in the country’s development and caused a migration of the population to more developed regions. Vincent Degert (FoNet, file) Beta Tanjug

“Serbia will get EU candidate status”

“When Serbia gets the EU candidate status new funds will open and it will be able to use funds for agriculture and social inclusion, which are the EU priorities,” he explained.

Committee of the Regions Working Group on the Western Balkans Chairman Franz Schausberger believes that the European Council made a mistake by not granting Serbia the EU candidate status in December.

“The key mistake is the fact that the European Council did not give Serbia the EU candidate status in December,” he pointed out.

According to him, Serbia remains “the central force of stability and good regional relations in the Balkans and can be a driving force in this part of Europe”.

“The EU needs to give a sign to Serbia on its European pathway,” Schausberger pointed out.

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister for Economy and Regional Development Verica Kalanović has expressed expectation that Serbia will get the EU candidate status in the next few weeks and stressed that the country has made great progress in the EU accession process in the last decade.

She recalled the EU officials’ assessments that Serbia was ready for the EU candidacy and that it was a mistake that the European Council did not grant the country the candidate status in December.

Commenting on regional development in Serbia, Kalanović noted that a centralized system had been created in the last 50 years which had created great differences in the country’s development and caused a migration of the population to more developed regions.