Serbian Parliament President Brnabić says EU unfairly blocks Serbia’s EU accession talks

Ana Brnabić, president of Serbia’s parliament, told Politico that the European Union has changed the rules of enlargement, making it harder for Serbia to progress toward membership. She noted that when negotiations began in 2014 the criteria were clear – gradual alignment with the EU’s foreign and security policy and full convergence before accession – but now “the rules have changed and it is not fair.”

Brnabić said Serbia’s pre‑accession negotiations are effectively frozen because the country is not “fully aligned with the EU’s external and security policy,” and warned that the EU is preparing to cut up to €1.5 billion in pre‑accession funds. She contrasted Serbia’s situation with Albania and Montenegro, which she said have made significant progress, and criticized what she called “false narratives” and different criteria applied to Serbia.

The remarks come amid broader EU scrutiny of candidate countries in the Western Balkans and reflect ongoing tensions over Serbia’s pro‑Russian stance and the impact of the Ukraine war on its EU path.