Building trust between Serbia and the European Union is vital for accelerating the country’s accession talks. The recent invitation to Serbia to submit negotiating positions on Chapter 16 (taxation) and Chapter 19 (social policy and employment) marks a significant milestone, with Hungary playing a pivotal role in advocating for Serbia’s progress.
Bálint Ódor, Hungary’s Permanent Representative to the EU, highlighted the importance of opening Cluster 3 and fostering dialogue between the EU and Serbia. Reflecting on Hungary’s presidency of the Council of the EU, he discussed the key achievements, including reinvigorating the enlargement process, and reaffirmed Hungary’s unwavering support for Serbia’s European integration.
How much have initiatives such as the opening of clusters contributed to building trust between the EU and Serbia?
Strengthening trust is key when it comes to the acceleration of the accession talks. Last cluster with Serbia was opened almost three years ago. We thought it was important to go ahead, try to make the next step, as the Commission stated in three consecutive reports that Serbia fulfilled the criteria to open cluster 3. Engage actively with Serbia, listen to the Member States, work together with the Commission. This is how we tried to have all the Member States on board in order to make the next step with Serbia.
To answer more directly to your question, I think that the initiative to open cluster 3, and multiple discussions in the Council and with Serbia contributed to build trust between the EU and Serbia. I am glad that this week we’ve made a major step in Serbia’s accession process as I had the honor to sign and send a letter on behalf of the Council of the EU to invite Serbia to submit its negotiating positions on Chapter 16, dealing with taxation, and Chapter 19, concerning social policy and employment.
This proves our commitment to building an ever closer relationship with Serbia, and we truly hope that the upcoming presidencies will keep up this momentum.
Can Serbia continue to rely on Hungary's support on its European path?
Of course, Hungary, as a close partner of Serbia, will do its utmost to help the country to conclude the accession talks and make the accession a reality as soon as possible. We know and acknowledge the efforts Belgrade made recently to achieve progress on the long-stagnating process. We’ve been waiting for too long, it is time to switch to high gears, we hope we contributed to this during the Hungarian Presidency.
The strategic interest of the EU is to bring Serbia closer to the European Union
We will insist on the importance to preserve the merit-based enlargement policy and, at the same time, the credibility of the enlargement process. The strategic interest of the EU is to bring Serbia closer to the European Union, and this is the best way to ensure that we can see the strengthening of the stability in the Western-Balkans region.
Are you satisfied with the outcomes of Hungary's presidency, and what successes would you highlight?
I remember those voices predicting that our presidency would achieve limited tangible results due to its timing during a transition period. This proved to be a misbelief. The adoption of the Budapest Declaration on the New European Competitiveness Deal, the full accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen area, the new approach on migration as defined by the October European Council, the new impetus in the accession process of Western Balkan countries are only four of the many achievements we reached in the last six months. Even in retrospective I can say that the program and priorities of the Hungarian presidency enjoyed considerable support and were effectively implemented.
