EU elections: negative warning results for European integration, Kosovo- Serbia

Political science professor at the University of Rome Federiga Bindi and European Council for Foreign Relations analyst Maria Simoenova told journalist Garentina Kraja that the elections revealed a grim mirror in Europe under the shadow of war in Ukraine, which they think would continue to remain the main concern of the European bloc in the meantime facing financial crisis and the controversial rhetoric against immigration.

The Western Balkans will be the main loser of the new political reality in Europe, emerging from European parliamentary elections, according to analysts.

The European elections, held from June 6th to 9th, marked an apparent increase of right-wing parties, though the main pro-European parties maintained the supremacy.

Analysts estimate that one of the first effects is expected to be on enlargement policy.

Political science professor at the University of Rome and the University of Boulder in Colorado, Federiga Bindi, says that the integration of the Western Balkans has not been a priority for European Union policies and that this European orientation, which he calls “short-term”, will continue to accompany the region even during the next five years of the mandate of 720 new MEPs.

The countries of the Western Balkans are the biggest losers in this whole situation, especially because of the war in Ukraine. The European Union's integration efforts have diminished... Over the past eight years, there is no longer talk about the Balkans, although there is much evidence that the EU could bring about change in this region. The influence of the EU is evident not only in Slovenia, and Croatia, but also in other parts of the Western Balkans, in Bosnia and Albania and in other countries, it is seen how much effort these states have made to become EU members and the fact that the European Union does not respond and prioritise other states, such as Ukraine, is sincerely unfair and also fleeting... Europeans are completely confused by Ukraine and have lost hope for anything else”.

European Council for Foreign Relations expert Maria Simeonova says that although the right-wing parties increased their presence in all 27 European Union states, the results in France and Germany were the most shocking, shaking the position of leaders of the bloc's two main states, which had a greater commitment to the Balkans.

“Finance and Germany are big players in the region and like the two largest member states, they play a crucial role in the processes in the Balkans, in particular in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in the process of dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia... Therefore, it will have a negative effect on new initiatives for the Western Balkans, since President Macron and Chancellor Scholz have greatly weakened in their countries”.

Analyst Simeonova says the election results will also underline the European Union's “enlargement process” with the countries of the region and the breakdown of efforts to engage with Kosovo and Serbia to advance the normalisation process.

The “will be harder for the European Union, taking into account the election results, to reach consensus on enlargement. This does not necessarily mean that there will be no political will or will take concrete steps. But I think the largest presence of right-wing parties in parliament enables them to curb some of the most bold initiatives that must be made in relation to the Western Balkans”.

Professor Bindi says the European Union's lack of attention has left behind a fragile situation, including in dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, where the bloc has a weighty role as an intermediational side to reach a normalisation agreement between the two countries, which, according to her, has been left behind due to the war in Ukraine.

“What can the European Union offer these states to achieve peace? When (former EU Representative for Foreign Policy and Security Catherine) Ashton negotiated the deal, we had something to offer, but now it is clear that membership is a long-term goal. We have nothing to offer and this situation doesn't help”.

Lady Bindi says the EU and the United States' lack of attention in the Western Balkans has created space for other powers in the region.

The external policy “is like physics. When empty, he tends to fill. There are regional and international actors who are interested in filling this gap. Russia, with the whole Serbian side, China is everywhere, then Turkey among Muslims and Gulf states, which have invested in Bosnia and Albania. So ( The EU is losing the opportunity in its backyard, in a region for which it should most cherish”.

Analysts say a special role in the dynamics of developments in the region in the coming months will have the US presidential elections held in November, which they say could also determine the speed of European leaders' actions in the Western Balkans. / VOA