German journalist Michael Martens of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) has said that calls are growing in Brussels to halt EU accession talks with Serbia and to stop all payments to the Serbian state, Rks News reports.
According to Martens, such a move would turn Serbia into a second Turkey a candidate country in name only.
“News from Brussels: Calls are growing for the EU to completely halt accession negotiations with Serbia, stop all pre-accession payments to the country, etc. If this were to happen, Serbia would find itself in a situation similar to Turkey. Turkey is officially still an EU candidate country, but this status exists only on paper. More on this tomorrow, including an official statement,” Martens wrote.
The growing calls appear to be a response to Serbia’s recent actions, including the official honors given to convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić.
European Commissioner Marta Kos had already canceled her planned visit to Belgrade, while today European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also issued a strongly worded reaction.
