Garčević Calls for Decisive EU Action on Enlargement
Following the Bled Strategic Forum in Slovenia, Ambassador Vesko Garčević, Professor of the Practice of International Relations at the Pardee School, was interviewed by Delo, Slovenia’s leading daily newspaper, about EU enlargement, the impact of Iceland’s vote to discontinue their EU membership on the future of enlargement, and the prospects of the current EU candidate countries. The interview, titled ‘If EU Enlargement Stops, Balkan Enthusiasm May Dry Up,’ was published on September 7.
Commenting on the main messages from the panel on EU enlargement to the Western Balkans at the Bled Strategic Forum, Garčević highlighted the optimism with which the issue was addressed. In his view, it is clear to everyone that EU enlargement is necessary. What is less clear, however, is how much decision-makers are prepared to do to advance it despite this awareness.
The potential failure of the enlargement project would be music to the ears of extremists, who are becoming increasingly vocal in the region. For Europe, this would create yet another major challenge and could jeopardize its global standing, Garčević warned.
According to Garčević, challenging times call for more decisive action from the EU:
“In times of challenge, decisive, far-reaching decisions must be made instead of hiding behind bureaucratic procedures. If the EU wishes to affirm its position as a key factor in Europe and globally, it must make decisions similar to those made by its founders after World War II. One of those decisions is a decision to continue with enlargement.”
In his view, Iceland’s “No” to EU membership should not be seen as a setback for the existing enlargement process. Iceland’s relationship with the EU is fundamentally different from that of countries whose accession has been closely linked to the democratic transformation of post-authoritarian societies. Iceland, therefore, did not reject the idea of European integration; rather, its citizens chose where and in which areas they wished to integrate.
Commenting on the internal debate over how to reform or improve the EU’s decision-making process, Garčević noted that becoming bogged down in overly bureaucratic procedures is all too often a convenient excuse for failing to make decisions.
“Something must change so that the EU can make decisions more effectively. For the EU, this is the key issue now, but it is an internal matter to be decided by EU members. As far as enlargement is concerned, it is currently crucial that these internal discussions on voting and decision-making reform are not used as a pretext to halt enlargement.”
Vesko Garčević is a professor of the practice of international studies at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies and the director of the Center for the Study of Europe. An expert on multilateral issues, Garčević is the co-author of Montenegro and Serbia: A Velvet Divorce? (Bloomsbury Academic, 2025) which explores the divergent past between Serbia and Montenegro between 1988 and 2023. To read more about his work and accomplishments, visit his faculty profile.