The Serbian government has established a Coordination Body tasked with speeding up the country’s EU accession process. The team will be headed by Danijel Apostolović, the head of Serbia’s mission to the EU.
Alongside Apostolović, the body includes nine high-level officials: Minister for European Integration Nemanja Starović, Finance Minister Siniša Mali, Justice Minister Nenad Vujić, Agriculture Minister Dragan Glamočić, Interior Minister Ivica Dačić, Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabić, Presidential Advisor Tatjana Jović, Prime Ministerial Advisor Nemanja Diković, and Kosovo Office Director Petar Petković.
The group is tasked with coordinating the accelerated implementation of EU-related obligations at the highest state level.
Current Situation
Serbia faces a challenging environment: while Montenegro is expected to close five EU accession chapters this winter, Serbia has not opened a single chapter since 2021. Of the 35 negotiating chapters, Serbia has opened 22, with only science and education chapters temporarily closed.
The European Commission reports that Serbia’s progress on democracy and rule of law has worsened, with growing concern in Brussels that the country is moving away from the EU rather than closer to it.
Critics note that key ministers in the new coordination body are responsible for areas heavily criticized by the EU, including police misconduct, corruption, and weak judicial independence. Observers question how these figures can advance EU accession reforms, which would require strengthening the rule of law, media freedom, and democratic elections—potentially undermining the current regime.
About Danijel Apostolović
Born in 1980 in Zenica, Bosnia, Apostolović began his career as a reporter at RTS after graduating from the Faculty of Political Sciences. He later worked in the Ministry of Finance and the Serbian Government’s PR and media team, as well as at Serbia’s Mission to the EU in Brussels and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He speaks fluent French and English.
The creation of the Coordination Body represents an attempt to centralize and streamline Serbia’s EU accession efforts, though analysts warn that systemic political and institutional challenges could hinder tangible progress.
