European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Cos stated that the European Union (EU) remains concerned about the state of the rule of law in candidate countries, even though there is tangible progress in this area.
"Interference in court proceedings, pressure on officials investigating corruption and politicization of media regulators persist, which is unacceptable," Kos told reporters at a conference of the EU General Affairs Council, following a discussion by ministers from several member states and candidate countries on the rule of law in the EU.
The Council is currently chaired by Denmark, and its Minister for European Affairs, Marie Bjerre, has stated that the rule of law in the EU is currently its most important value.
Bjere said that during the discussion, the ministers discussed the state of the rule of law in the Western Balkan countries, with reference to the report on this topic published by the European Commission (EC) in July this year.
The EU Council discussion was also attended by the ministers for European integration of Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia, who did not comment on the outcome of the talks, the Beta agency reported.
Kos added that EU members rely on the rule of law, which includes an independent judiciary, elections and media, and that countries that aspire to membership but cannot guarantee a certain level of the rule of law cannot enter the Union.
She also stated that the Western Balkan countries are currently "at the center of the enlargement process," and that the rule of law guarantees them freedom and strength in that process.
"It is clear that if the candidates do not respect the implementation of the rule of law in their countries, they will not be able to be members of the Union," Kos said.
Bjere and Kos also spoke about introducing additional sanctions on Russia, and they concluded that stronger European support for Ukraine is needed, as well as stronger resistance to Russia.
"Russia is a threat to the EU. We need to show determination and put additional pressure on it," Bjere said.
Of all the Western Balkan countries, only Serbia has not joined the EU sanctions against Russia. Serbia's top officials continue to maintain close relations with the Kremlin, despite calls from Brussels that Serbia is obliged, as a candidate country for EU membership, to gradually align its foreign and security policy with that of the European Union.
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