Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia said that membership perspective of candidate countries depended, among other things, on finding durable solutions to pending disputes with neighbours.
Joining the EU requires strong political will and ensuring tangible and viable reform, Fabrizi said as he presented EU Strategy for the Western Balkans to members of the Foreign Investors Council.
Fabrizi recalled that accession negotiations were well underway only with Serbia and Montenegro, adding that the Strategy clearly states that the EU door is open for the rest of the countries in the region, provided that each of them meets the established criteria, reads a statement released by the Foreign Investors Council.
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“Credible enlargement perspective requires constant effort and irreversible reform. Progress on the EU path is tied to goals and their attaining. Advance on the EU path is in Serbia’s national and state interest,“ he said.
The Council sees the process of European integration as an excellent mechanism to increase the competitiveness of Serbian economy and supports it as such, said Vice-President to the Foreign Investors Council Ingeborg Øfsthus.
“Throughout negotiations, a candidate country should implement comprehensive reform and enhance administrative capacity in order to enforce the law, which is one of the major issues Serbia is dealing with. The economy should be brought up to date so that it can live up to the competitive pressure as the country gets closer to the end of accession process. These challenges are great, but the Council can rise to them knowing that 74 per cent of our members have come here from the EU with the knowledge and strength needed to support the accession process,” Øfsthus said.
