On January 1, 2025, when Poland took over the six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union, it presented its plan and commitments through a document.
EU enlargement, including six Western Balkans countries, Ukraine, and Moldova, is one of the priorities, based on their individual achievements, as stated in the document.
However, in the Western Balkans, the Republic of Kosovo stands as the worst off in its European integration path. Two years ago, Kosovo submitted its application for candidate status, but there has been no movement from Brussels.
In a response to Klan Kosova from the Polish government, led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, the government outlined its plan to move forward with Kosovo’s application.
They closely associate it with the normalization dialogue with Serbia.
“There are no criteria per se for Kosovo’s application to move forward, although progress in dialogue can help, to some extent, your case. That said, relations with Belgrade must improve, and several key conditions outlined in this year’s European Commission report on Kosovo must be fulfilled, including all Brussels Agreements plus the Ohrid Annex.”
“Avoiding any provocative actions that lead to tensions and violence, as well as unilateral decisions from either side that affect stability and security on the ground, can also be beneficial,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Warsaw stated.
The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs also expressed hopes that some progress might be possible regarding Kosovo’s EU membership application, but they added that this will depend on many factors, independent of the Polish presidency of the EU Council.
“Given this, unfortunately, the opportunities and prospects for Kosovo’s application to move forward, at least for the moment, appear quite limited. As you are fully aware, the fact that five EU member states do not recognize Kosovo, also does not help your European aspirations.”
The five non-recognizing EU member states are Spain, Greece, Romania, Cyprus, and Slovakia.
