EU enlargement is a complex and lengthy process that grants membership to candidate countries that meet the required criteria. The event of the veto, that rejected North Macedonia and Albania to...Show moreEU enlargement is a complex and lengthy process that grants membership to candidate countries that meet the required criteria. The event of the veto, that rejected North Macedonia and Albania to accession negotiates, temporarily ceased the enlargement process and underlined certain systematic deficiencies. The veto was initiated by French President Emmanuel Macron under the justification that Albania had not satisfied certain requirements to be suitable for accession talks as the state lacked a certain degree of economic stability. Various countries reacted differently to Macron’s decision. The Netherlands and Denmark showed support whereas Serbia, a current candidate country, reacted in a different manner. Serbia’s attitude towards the EU significantly changed as there was an underlying presence of hostility. Before the veto, there was a high level of EU-Serbia cooperation. Serbia was taking certain initiatives to demonstrate commitment by opening new chapters and collaborating with different EU leading politicians to discuss enlargement. Whereas after, there was less support for the EU and an increase in cooperation with actors that are not in favour of the EU, such as with Russia, Turkey and China. This paper examines the Serbia-EU relationship by analyzing the responses Serbia conducted before and after the veto. By using qualitative research methods, it identifies and analyzes the significant events during the time period of interest and applies different theoretical frameworks to further provide an explanation for the established responses. The theories applied were different theoretical frameworks to enlargement and theories relevant to Serbian enlargement politics. This research bases its evidence from various news articles and investigates the political activity conducted by Serbia in the form of public statements and political decision making. The research demonstrates that the responses were a product of Serbia not having effectively internalized the EU fundamental principles, thus preventing Serbia from progressing on its path towards the EU. The event of the veto damaged the EU’s credibility and established that the possibilities of future EU enlargement have significantly decreased. Therefore, for Serbia, an implementation of unfavorable liberal principles within their state is considered as unnecessary since the guarantee of membership is perceived as uncertain.Show less
