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Comment by Ari Rusila on April 26, 2011 at 9:22

Serbia has implemented significant structural reforms in many parts of its economy over the past decade, its negotiating position with both the EU and the US is improving. However a “privileged partnership“ could be a pragmatic alternative model in EU enlargement and it could even be better alternative for all stakeholders than full EU membership.

 

This is the issue related to my new article Serbia’s EU association is not a Must in my main blog.

Comment by Ari Rusila on October 3, 2010 at 12:18

Only to inform you that related to elections today in BiH I published an article "Bosnia on the road to the EU, sorry to Dissolution" in my main blog.

Comment by Ari Rusila on August 19, 2010 at 13:15

To Veronica. My main blog (I have 6 with English+one newsportal and one in Finnish, mainly same content but different readerships) can be found from http://arirusila.wordpress.com

Comment by Veronika Krupova on August 19, 2010 at 12:13

I would agree on Turkey too, doubts with Serbia...
From this point of view you are partially right but matter of fact is that EU is first and foremost economic (politic) union and it doesn't care about any kind of 'society' measures...
Anyway where could I read some of your blog posts? I would be interested. Thank you.

Comment by Ari Rusila on August 19, 2010 at 12:00

3rd way I was thinking mainly with Turkey and Serbia (with Kosovo province or without it), maybe Montenegro and Macedonia too.

I don't have exact data why I claimed that some western Balkan countries in my opinion are closer to EU than R&B. The background may be that old Yugoslavia was years quite developed society, as people from YU could freely travel to west and work there this created some wester orientation which habits did not disappeared totally during Balkan Wars. R&B were longer more closed societies and they still have some gap between them and the rest of EU.

Comment by Veronika Krupova on August 19, 2010 at 11:45

In my opinion your term 'the third way' would fit for Kosovo. I don't see Kosovo as a full member even in the far future.
Even though ICJ declared positive opinion on Kosovo independence recently there are countries which would never agree on that. This special relationship would be way how to satisfy countries which are in favour of Kosovo independence, either those who are not...

In which terms (e.g. economic, politic?) do you think that countries such as Croatia etc. are closer than Romania, Bulgaria to the EU? I mean of course there are some problematic issues in R.&B. relations to the EU but neither Western Balkan is not just as simple as you served that here.

Comment by Ari Rusila on August 19, 2010 at 11:11

I am especially interested about "third way" between EU membership and non-membership e.g. the possible content of "privileged partnership" planned for Turkey. As EU sceptic I have in my blog even proposed to some Balkan countries that this partnership could be better aim than full membership. I am interested the views of community about this issue.

There was a question if Balkan countries are far away from the EU. I think that Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and even Macedonia (FYROM) are as societies more near EU than e.g. Romania and Bulgaria, however accidentally they slipped in for political reasons.

Comment by Veronika Krupova on August 12, 2010 at 15:42

One of the leading NGOs in Serbia is 'the Helsinki Committee'. Its goal is to deal with the situation of human rights in Serbia and also to examine its chances towards the EU membership (particularly its role within/out the EU)...

follow its link:

http://www.helsinki.org.rs/eu.html

Comment by Veronika Krupova on August 12, 2010 at 15:34

"The EU – Western Balkans Ministerial Meeting
of June 2, 2010 in Sarajevo was a failure in
terms of the messages stemming from it. Aft er
the Sarajevo meeting the ten-year endeavor to
bring the Western Balkans closer to EU looks
like a paradox: Europe has never before been
farther from the Balkans...."

Read more here...http://www.helsinki.org.rs/doc/HB-No65.pdf

What is your opinion - are the Balkan countries seriously far away from the EU...?