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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

Connected region best path to full EU membership

Belgrade/Tirana, 21 November 2025

Prime Minister Professor Đuro Macut, MD, DSc, stated today at the Western Balkans Leaders’ Summit in Tirana that a stable, connected and economically integrated region is the best path to a common goal, which is full membership in the European Union.

At a panel with Western Balkans leaders and European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, Macut reiterated and confirmed Serbia’s firm commitment to improving regional cooperation in the Western Balkans.

According to him, regional cooperation is not only a strategic commitment, but also a daily need of the countries of the region, because through it we build more stable economies, more attractive markets and better living conditions for all our citizens.

Serbia believes and continuously emphasises that the focus of regional cooperation should be on issues where there are harmonised or similar positions, such as the economy, transport, connecting chambers of commerce, youth mobility and creating opportunities for their education and employment, explained the Prime Minister.

These areas, as he stated, are at the core of the concept of the Common Regional Market, which should be seen as a key driver of the development of our entire region.

That is why we believe that our primary focus should remain on connecting the economies of the countries of the region in order to progress towards a single market, the Prime Minister reiterated.

At the same time, he pointed to the problem of professional truck drivers who have a limited stay in the territory of the European Union, recalling that our transport and business community had already pointed out this problem to the European Commission three years ago, but without progress.

Now, with the introduction of ETIAS, we are facing a serious problem that will escalate and cause significant damage to the economies of all our countries. We must find a solution for the treatment of professional drivers in the Schengen area, otherwise all these topics we are talking about today will remain only declarative and without a real impact on the daily lives of citizens, Macut warned.

To solve this issue, the political will of the European Commission alone is sufficient, Macut emphasised, assessing that this would be a way to show goodwill on the part of Europe, but also to prove that when we are united, we can achieve a lot.

He also referred to the reduction or abolition of roaming costs for our citizens, emphasising that after the abolition of roaming within the Western Balkans in July 2021, we expect the abolition of roaming costs between the Western Balkans and the European Union to begin without delay.

In his opinion, the complete abolition of roaming costs, as in the case of Ukraine and Moldova, would represent the best possible message from the European Union to the citizens of our region.

The Prime Minister once again highlighted the importance of focusing on concrete and tangible results, as well as the need to do everything in order to ensure real added value in the daily lives of our citizens.

This is our primary task and our goal should be directed towards the future, but also to take steps today that will ensure a better life for our citizens, Macut stated.