Foreign Policy: Biden's new executive order warns changes in Serbia

Enlarging the executive order to fight corruption in the Balkans, as well as warning measures against those who do not implement the specific agreements, undermine democratic processes and human rights as being a stance representing the closed division of the Biden administration by the previous administration.

The executive order provides Beden with the catalyst to collect support among US allies at next week's EU and NATO summits, sending a powerful signal of Western unity ahead of US President Vladimir Putin's meeting in Geneva. Unfortunately, inertia in Brussels and within the administration's own State Department presents a strong obstacle to the realisation of the principle vision determined by the US president and his secretary of state. At the moment, the United States and the EU have a two-level system when it comes to democratic standards in the Balkans -- a privileged road, with no harm to Serbia, and a stricter path to Serbia's EU hopeful neighbours, writes Foreign Policy.

It's a dangerous paradox: The region's most anti-democratic regime, the Serbian government led by President Aleksandar Vucic, receives the most favourable treatment by US and EU officials. Unlike the Cold War dictators such as Yugoslavia's Josip Broz Tito, whom the West supported, Vuciq is a tool for opponents of the West, Russia and China. Belgrade practices and promotes nonliberal democracy of its main ally in the EU, Hungary. Serbia's candidacy for EU membership is largely absurd. While his neighbours struggle for the right to open negotiations with the EU, Belgrade is dead, as it has closed only two of the 35 accession negotiations on eight-year candidacy. Last year, Serbia did not open a new chapter of accession, it is highlighted further in this article.

According to Foreign Policy, the unbalanized Western treatment of Serbia represents the most intriguing and significant element for the expanded executive order and among the main challenges for the Benden General Mission to gather European support for democracy. Serbia has the most sophisticated and widespread form of corruption in the region. The renowned Serbian academy, Dusan Pavlovic, calls it “institutional recovery”. The robbery of the Vuciqi regime is systematic, not only opportunistic. As Pavlovic explains, resources extracted from state crates supply the regime with power and resources to control national confession, marginalise and intimidate opponents and activists, and rule indefinitely. Choices become parody.

The American media says Serbia is the main example in the region with the main risk of corruption highlighted by Biden ʹ it “mins confidence in democratic processes”. And yet they have also repeatedly praised the Vuciqi regime as the region's “political and economic leader, a disappointing vision of a prevailing capital that continues to destabilise its smaller neighbours. Instead of pushing the government for reform, American officials have pressured activists to minimize their complaints and co-operate with the authorities who molest them. Officials have called on the opposition to participate in completely unjust elections, removing opposition leaders from a form of self-reservation threat of boycott. Vuciqi can accurately claim that he has the support of the US and the EU as he resurrects and improves former leader Slobodan Milosevic's electoral authoritarianism at home and revives the vision of a destabilising Serbia in the region.

Meanwhile, Serbia's neighbours are regularly searched for their corruption. Albania has long been denied the opportunity to open its negotiations for EU membership due to corruption and the setback related to democratic practices. The United States has just sanctioned former Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha, who has long lacked power.

The new executive order warns of much needed changes. But early signals are mixed. While the American ambassador to Albania immediately posted the White House announcement, noting his application in Albania, the American ambassador to Serbia instead wrote with praise for the NBA star Nikola Jokic, who is Serbian, for choosing as the League MPP. Beden and Blinken have already issued several strong and clear statements to regional leaders, only to see lower-ranking officials diluting them. In February, Beden wrote to Vuciqi, calling on Serbian leader to make reforms and recognise Kosovo. The American Embassy quickly denied that this represented a change in US politics. Officials then claimed recognition is simply a “ideal thing”, embracing the EU position. In April, the State Department again withdrew against “unjustified calculations regarding changing borders in the Balkan region along ethnic lines” just to see an American official keep the door open for this approach.