“We have been in talks with the government in Belgrand for a long time to limit visa-free entry from third countries from Asia, Africa or Latin America, which are used for onward travel to the EU,” said the German foreign minister. Affairs. Special Representative for the Western Balkans, Manuel Sarrazin, Funke media group newspapers (Friday editions).
Throughput should be reduced
In early October, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic announced that he would update his country’s visa system to European standards by the end of the year, Sarrazin said. This is “an important step as it would help reduce transit through Serbia.” Serbia plays a key role in this, “but it also concerns countries such as North Macedonia, Montenegro or Bosnia-Herzegovina”.
Serbia must adjust foreign policy
Sarrazin also demanded that Serbia, which has close ties to Moscow, align its foreign policy with that of the EU. “This also applies to the EU sanctions against Russia as a result of the war in Ukraine, which Serbia has not yet supported. We want President Vucic to correct his policy here.”
In the Serbian considerations “the question will certainly also play a role as to how much a completely isolated Russian president has to offer as a partner in the future”. “It shouldn’t be that much anymore,” the Western Balkans representative added.
According to Sarrazin, the federal government expects Russia to resolutely oppose any rapprochement between the Western Balkans and the EU. “Moscow wants to torpedo the European future of the region and the efforts to bring about reconciliation between the countries,” Sarrazin told Funke Medien.
Sarrazin nevertheless assumes that the EU is still the more attractive model in the Balkans. However, this presupposes “that the promise of EU enlargement is fulfilled and that the concrete steps towards it are implemented”. “This applies to the accession negotiations with North Macedonia and Albania as well as to visa liberalization for travel from Kosovo to the EU,” the federal government commissioner warned.
(SDA)