Serbia's EU Candidacy: A Friend or A Foe?

10:30am, 26th May 2023

Despite being one of the largest recipients of EU support, Serbia has failed to reciprocate its commitment and has instead distanced itself from the EU and aligned with authoritarian powers like Russia and China. In the aftermath of Russia's war in Ukraine, Serbia has weaponized migration, escalated conflict with Kosovo, and deteriorated its democratic institutions. This panel aims to highlight the shortcomings of the EU's enlargement policy towards Serbia, a key candidate state, and to discuss potential solutions to this challenge. With Serbia becoming an increasingly important topic in EU politics, it is important to understand what is happening and what actions the EU can take to address this issue.

Speakers

  • Richard Kraemer

    President of US-EU Alliance

    Richard Kraemer is the President of the US-Europe Alliance and has extensive experience in managing programs in Afghanistan, Iran, and Turkey. He previously worked at the Center for International Private Enterprise and taught law at Jagiellonian University in Poland. He is affiliated with the Foreign Policy Research Institute and the Public International Law and Policy Groups, where he advised governments of Georgia and Montenegro. Kraemer is a member of the New York State Bar Association and is proficient in Dari, Farsi, and Polish.

  • Thijs Reuten

    Member of the European Parliament (Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats)

    Thijs Reuten is an MEP for the Dutch Labour Party (PvdA) in the S&D Group. He's active in the EP's Foreign Affairs and Civil Liberties committees. He served for eight years as district alderman in Amsterdam and worked as political advisor to Frans Timmermans during his mandate as Minister for European Affairs. Before joining the Parliament Thijs was Head of Policy at Amsterdam based sustainability ngo Global Reporting Initiative.

  • Lana Pedisic (Moderator)

    Research Fellow, Young Security Conference

    Lana is a Research Fellow at the Young Security Conference and a Junior Research Fellow at the International Development Research Network. She focuses on the European Foreign and Security Policy, EU Enlargement Policy, Belt and Road Initiative in Europe, EU-China, and EU-Taiwan relations. She holds a Master’s in Global Security and Strategy from the Brussels School of Governance and a Bachelor of Science in International Business from the Rochester Institute of Technology.

  • Vujo Ilić

    Research Fellow, University of Belgrade, Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory

    Vujo Ilić is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Philosophy and Social Theory, University of Belgrade. He received his PhD in Political Science from the Central European University in Budapest. Vujo’s research interests include democracy, elections, political conflicts, and violence, focusing on Southeast Europe. In the citizen organization Crta, he leads the analytical team in election observation, develops electoral recommendations, and designs surveys. He regularly comments on political developments in Serbia and the region for domestic and international media outlets.

  • MP Robert Kozma

    Member of Serbia’s Parliament

    Robert Kozma is a member of the ExecutiveCouncil of the green-left political movement Ne davimo Beograd (Don’t let Belgrade Drown) / Green Left Front and member of the National Assembly of Serbia (active in European Affairs Committee; Spatial Planning Committee; Committee on Labour and Social Issues). He has obtained an MA in Political Science at the Central European University and BA in Political Science at the Faculty of Political Science in Belgrade. He has more than 10 years of experience in civil society in Serbia, organizing various programs of intercultural education and education for democracy for domestic youth and support programs for asylum seekers, refugees and migrants. Has been active in various social activism initiatives.