MEP: Opening of Cluster 3 Is Matter of Weeks – That Is The Next Step

Vladimir Bilcik, Matjaz Nemec (BETAPHOTO/SERBIAN GOVERNMENT/SLOBODAN MILJEVIC)

Member of European Parliament Matjaz Nemec stated on Dec. 11 that the opening of Cluster 3 within Serbia’s European integration was a matter of weeks.

“I cannot say if it would be during the presidency of Hungary or Poland, but yes – that could be the next step,” he said during the panel discussion titled “The Future of the European Union after the new institutional composition of the European Parliament and the Commission.” The panel was held within the Strategic Streams 2024 annual international conference of the Forum for Strategic Studies.

He said that, when the next steps are defined regarding enlargement in the context of Montenegro are defined, this would be a great challenge for the position of Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and a test for him and his policy. “If President Vucic is honest in his policy about the European path, we will not face geopolitical challenges. If not, we shall see – whether he is acting, wearing a mask or being honest. My predictions are positive, especially regarding Montenegro and Albania; it will be challenging to see what Vucic’s reaction will be – not the reaction of Serbia, because, for me, Serbia is not Vucic and Vucic is not Serbia,” he added.

The enlargement of the European Union, he stated, is an investment into stability, prosperity and democracy throughout Europe. “Reforms are necessary in the candidate countries, but we must also bear in mind that institutional and financial reforms are needed in the EU before the enlargement,” he said.