There are always doubt when it comes to international law and international organizations or institutions which are supposed to implement the law and ensure that rule of law is at the top of priorities. It is understandable, as it is not an easy task to control every aspect and satisfy interests of each member state while being careful not to get trapped by anarchy. On the other hand, we need to be realistic and admit that rule of law is nowhere near its peak and there no equal opportunities for each individual to exercise its rights. The European Union is declining during the last decade, and even if it may not be the case in official records it is the case in human eyes and in perspective of its citizens, which is an issue that we should deal with as soon as possible. As the main objective of the EU should be equal treatments for all we should strive for equality and make clear distinction between its institutional goals and member states’ goals. We need to distinguish and seek for perfect balance between intergovernmental and supranational objectives in order to establish stable environment for all. Furthermore, another important notion that we need to advocate for is better approach for non-member states, as we can’t allow to push away non-members with wrong strategies.  

Let’s go back to point. It’s been quite a long time since we have seen “a package” of states joining to the EU, and basically we have states on stand-by for quite a long period of time and I am mainly referring to WB6 – Western Balkan states, which are waiting to make a step forward in negotiations or in the process of getting a candidate status.  It doesn’t take long to realize that this region is falling behind member states if you read reports by the EU Commission, but the European Union is expected to get more involved in the process and assist to these states in order to develop at higher peace, and to asses real extent of the gap between member and non-members. Also, the EU needs through its own example to show to the citizens of these states that they are more than willing to accept them and embrace their cultures, as most of them are still waiting to see open readiness of the Union to accept them. The region is lacking security and justice, and greater contribution by current member states is needed to secure it. Furthermore, member states needs to mediate and cooperate more in the region and carefully to consider every statement made by any member state leader related to Balkans, as there were few of them that discouraged non-member states’ leaders and citizens when it comes to the idea of joining to the Union.

It’s not an easy assignment to make conclusion and elaborate it in few rows, as it is really hard to avoid generalization or judgement based on certain event or decisions, but what I would like to emphasize is that I am worried about decline of interest by the member states towards the idea of new members, and I believe that certain supranational objectives need to be sacrificed in order to stabilize the Union. Furthermore, the presence of the EU outside its territory should be much bigger nowadays as it needs to establish efficient mechanism to ensure rule of law and protect interests of citizens when it comes to stability and justice. 

Author : Amar Buljubasic, LDA Zavidovici