Von Beckerath in Belgrade: EU Waits on New Government
The head of the EU Delegation presented the European Commission's report on Serbia, offered support to the Student List and asked for dialogue with Pristina without delay.
Andreas von Beckerath, head of the European Union Delegation to Serbia, presented the European Commission’s annual report on Serbia at the European House in Belgrade on Wednesday, November 4, and said the Union is ready to support the reforms of the next government. The report covers the period from September 1, 2025, to September 1, 2026, and arrives ten days after the parliamentary elections held on October 25.
Before the press conference, von Beckerath handed the document to Nemanja Starovic, the caretaker Minister for European Integration, and to representatives of the Student List. We published the Cluster 3 finding from the Brussels report earlier today, and these are the messages the ambassador added in Belgrade.
What does the European Commission report on Serbia say?
The picture is mixed. Serbia remains among the candidate countries with the highest level of alignment with EU law, it is well prepared in the areas of the single market and competitiveness, and, in the Commission’s assessment, it has also met the technical benchmarks for opening Cluster 3.
On the other hand, von Beckerath said there was no movement in the negotiations during the reporting period.
“However, there has been no progress in the negotiations with the EU since the previous report,” he said.
The report records backsliding in media freedom and freedom of expression, in public administration, education and culture. Alignment with the EU’s common foreign and security policy is rated as low. The ambassador also pointed to growing polarization in society, damaged trust between the authorities and civil society, greater pressure on the judiciary, the constant presence of corruption and the risk of state capture.
What did von Beckerath tell the Student List?
The ambassador said the elections open the possibility of a fresh start, and in a statement from the EU Delegation he put it this way:
“The citizens of Serbia have clearly expressed their will. They want a government that fights corruption. They want a free and independent judiciary. They want free and independent media, democratic institutions that serve citizens, and human rights that are protected.”
At the press conference he praised the winning list directly:
“We welcome the readiness and ambition shown by the representatives of the Student List,” von Beckerath said, adding that these are precisely the issues that have slowed Serbia’s path to membership for years.
According to him, the Student List has announced it will work on meeting the interim benchmarks for chapters 23 and 24. Asked about alignment with EU foreign policy and about dialogue with Pristina after the change of government, he answered that the Union’s expectations have not changed, and that representatives of the Student List told him they would approach these topics through an open discussion within society.
“We are ready to support them, not because Brussels demands it but because the citizens of Serbia expect it,” the ambassador said, according to RTV.
The EU Delegation’s statement also carries his message that Serbia can return to the front ranks: “Serbia can once again become one of the frontrunners among the candidate countries.” The same text ends with the sentences: “The election results have opened a window of opportunity. Let us seize it.”
Pristina, war criminals and the question about Informer
Von Beckerath asked Serbia to take part constructively in the EU-mediated dialogue with Pristina and to fulfill the commitments it has taken on without further delay. He also called for confronting the past:
“Glorifying convicted war criminals is in clear contradiction with European values,” he said.
Asked whether the EU supports punishing the television station Informer, he replied that media freedom is a value of the Union, that every actor on the public stage bears responsibility for what is said, and that independent bodies should consider which measures, if any, to take. RTV reported the answer in indirect speech.
What comes after the presentation of the report?
The ambassador said EU enlargement is becoming a reality and that four countries are moving forward on that path, among them Montenegro, which he said is close to the goal. The report on Serbia is scheduled to be presented at the National Convention on the EU on Thursday, then to business leaders next week, and after that in Novi Sad, Nis and Kragujevac.
