EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had a busy schedule when she visited the states of Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo and North Macedonia this week, all in just under three days.
She has been to the region several times before, most recently in 2024. All six Western Balkan states hope to join the EU, though it is unclear exactly when this might happen. was the last country to join the bloc in 2013.
Countries in this region are working towards this goal at different speeds: While Montenegro, for example, is deemed to have a good chance of soon joining the EU, things look less promising for Serbia due to its pro-Russian politics and increasingly authoritarian government.
Serbians have been protesting almost non-stop against President Aleksandar Vucic’s government since a train station roof collapsed in Novi Sad, northern Serbia, in November 2024 killing 15 people then, with another person dying of their injuries in 2025. The Serbian opposition and protesters are calling for fresh elections, althrough Vucic rejects this demand and has .
This is one reason why the European Green Party (EGP) dismissed von der Leyen’s trip to Serbia as “completely inappropriate and politically misguided.” The Party of European Socialists (PES) called on her to ” and support calls by students and the opposition for fresh elections.”
Several civil society organizations, including Reporters Without Borders, have also urged von der Leyen to draw attention to press freedom problems in Serbia. Critics have repeatedly accused the EU of being too lenient towards Vucic.
Serbia urged to implement reforms
Still, during this visit to Serbia, von der Leyen did not mince words. At a press conference on October 15, she told reporters that “now is the moment for Serbia to get concrete about joining our union,” adding that “we need to see progress, on the rule of law, the electoral framework and media freedom.”
That von der Leyen decided to address these issues and publicly criticize Serbia’s democratic setbacks could end up strengthening the EU’s position, says Nikolaos Tzifakis, a professor of international relations at the College of Europe and expert on the West Balkans.
“It will have a significant impact on political reforms in the region if the EU consistently rewards progress and sanctions stagnation or setbacks,” the expert told DW.
The EU is putting its influence at risk and undermining the trust of pro-European forces if it pursues a policy of appeasement towards pro-Russia actors, he argued.
Von der Leyen also urged Serbia to join EU sanctions against Russia, even though just met his in September. While Serbia had aligned its foreign policy more closely with the EU in some respects, more needs to be done, von der Leyen said.
Montenegro leads by example
Her visit to Montenegro the day before showed just how much progress other countries in the region have already made towards EU membership, with von der Leyen praising Montenegro for being “fully aligned with the European Union’s foreign and security policy.”
“You are a frontrunner, without any question, in the accession process” she said, with a realistic chance of joining the EU by 2028.
Her Montenegro visit focused “more on investments rather than reforms,” Nina Vujanovic, a fellow at the Brussels-based Bruegel think tank, told DW. For example, Montenegro’s recent accession to the European SEPA payment area, along with Albania and North Macedonia, should help to grow its economy.
Von der Leyen endeavored to promote foreign direct investment, or FDI, in the region during her trip, Vujanovic says, even though it is already comparatively high. Western Balkans’ FDI accounted for an average of 6.4% of gross domestic product between 2020 and 2023, according to the OECD. That is more than four times the EU average of 1.5%.
The EU’s plan for the Western Balkans aims to further boost economic growth. Funding worth €6 billion ($7 billion) will be made available until 2027 to help double the region’s gross domestic product over the next 10 years.
Economic integration and geopolitics
While much of her visit centered on advancing economic integration, von der Leyen also called for political reforms, Vujanovic told DW.
“The Western Balkans region is very diverse, and this is reflected in the way she addressed decision-makers [about reforms] in the different countries,” Vujanovic added.
Von der Leyen also called for greater political stability not only in Serbia, but also in and .
Political analyst Tzifakis says the situation in Kosovo as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina poses , as nationalist divisions and conflicts open up opportunities for Russia to exert influence. Potential EU accession is therefore driven by “geopolitical considerations.”
Yet accession candidates should be under no illusion that the EU will bend over backwards to admit them, Tzifakis concludes. “Although the EU is determined to speed up the enlargement process, it is not prepared to lower the accession criteria.”
This article was translated from German.
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