Serbian journalists in Brussels, at the first EU Enlargement Forum
A group of Serbian journalists reported on the first EU Enlargement Forum, which was held in Brussels on 18 November 2025. A strong message was sent from the Forum to the candidate countries that the next cycle of enlargement is certain and that the European Commission considers enlargement a geopolitical priority.
With the support of the "Pulse of Europe" project, journalists from the Beta and FoNet news agencies, the daily newspapers Blic and Politika, as well as the European Western Balkans portal, were in Brussels on this occasion.
The Forum held in the Charlemagne building gathered around 500 participants - representatives of the European Commission, EU member sstates and candidate countries. The four panels discussed the geopolitical aspect of the enlargement, the enlargement of the Union from the perspective of member states and regions, the EU from the perspective of the citizens of the candidate countries, as well as "how to get to Yes", that is, how to complete the enlargement process.
In a video address, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said that the path to membership in the Union is challenging and requires many reforms and alignment with Union acquis, but also brings many benefits. The EU is a project of peace and expansion, in today's time of geopolitical uncertainty, is more than a choice for peace - it is an investment in common security and freedom, she said.
The European Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, in her keynote speech, said that today Europe should once again resist the forces that destabilise the continent, to cleanse the continent of autocracies, to defend the space of freedom and democracy. More in the report of the EWB portal.
This year was a good year for enlargement, said Kos and added that good progress was made by Montenegro, Albania, Moldova and Ukraine and that this shows that the reforms are paying off. She also assessed that "enlargement (policy) needs enlargement" as well as better communication about the benefits of enlargement.
The forum was addressed by Edi Rama, the prime minister of Albania, a country which, along with Montenegro and Moldova, has been repeatedly highlighted as having achieved significant progress in the negotiations. The coordinator of the National Convention, Bojana Selaković, spoke on the panel about how citizens in the candidate countries see enlargement on behalf of Serbia. She pointed out that Serbia is currently a deeply divided country, but that support for the Union exists. According to her, the citizens of Serbia now have to restore their trust in the EU, which can only be done by returning to European values.
The Prime Minister of Serbia, Ana Brnabić, participated in the panel that considered how to complete the enlargement, where she said that the reforms that Serbia is making in its European path are primarily good for Serbia itself, as well as that there is no consensus in the country about joining the EU, which should be the goal regardless of who is in power. More details are available in the Beta agency report.
Director General of the Directorate for Enlargement Gert Jan Koopman and European Commissioner for Defense Andrijus Kubilijus spoke about the challenges of enlargement for the Politika daily.
European Council President Antonio Costa closed the Forum with a message that enlargement is the best investment, the way forward and the only way to ensure that Europe remains a global force for peace, progress and stability.
The next day in Brussels, Serbian journalists were in the position to hear first comments about the Forum and its achievements from the policy analyst in the European Policy Centre, Berta Lopez Domenech and a senior correspondent from Brussels, Augustin Palokaj. A feature in the Daily European Service of the Beta News Agency gives details.