Prof. Dejan Jović, full professor at the Faculty of Political Science in Zagreb and international consultant of the Institute of International Politics and Economics, gave a lecture “War in Ukraine and the prospects of EU enlargement to the Western Balkans”.
Commenting on current events in Ukraine, Prof. Jović pointed out that attempts to compare the conflict in Ukraine with the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia during the 1990s are unfounded, and that the Western Balkans now had the opportunity to change its image as a border of civilizations or an area of necessary unrest, and further to reposition itself towards the European Union.
Jović emphasized that there is still a narrative in Brussels that the actors in the Western Balkans are to blame for not being part of the Union yet, despite the fact that there were many “episodes” in which the EU did not respond properly. The consequence of this delay is twofold, making the Western Balkans not only less European, but also less pro-European. According to Jović, “if the EU wants to be a great power, then it should act as a great power, which means expanding as far as it can and wherever it can”.
Regarding Ukraine’s application for the EU membership, Professor Jović said that the question now is whether the Western Balkans should be put a side, or parallel process should be established, or, at last, Ukraine’s integration should be dealt with only after the Western Balkans issue is closed.
