MEP Lukas Mandl spoke about Russian influence in the Balkans and Europe, Serbia’s position in this situation and the future of the Western Balkans.
According to Mandl, Russian disinformation in Europe is intended to divide and weaken Europe and Europeans.
“One of the findings of our Special Parliamentary Committee (of the European Parliament) was that 60% of foreign disinformation and interference originates in the Kremlin. This is an influence that damages our societies, that aims to divide us and weaken Europe, weaken Europeans. I would say that the EU has lost a lot in the six countries of the Western Balkans. We have missed many opportunities to include the six countries of the Western Balkans in the European Union. We must accelerate now, because losing these opportunities means leaving the door open to influence from outside Europe, from powers that do not share the values Europe stands for – such as the aforementioned values of liberal democracy, the rule of law and individual freedom for each person. Also, the Kremlin has a lot of influence in the Western Balkans and always tries to divide us here as well, to misuse subjects, governing bodies and other public subjects, even business subjects. And there is also a connection to organized crime. This is exactly what we should not allow to happen at all,” Mandl told The Geopost.
As far as Serbia is concerned, the MEP stated that this country is losing all opportunities to be on the right side.
“Since the beginning of the war, Serbia has been showing sympathy for the Kremlin and is still threatening its smaller neighboring country, the Republic of Kosovo, Europe’s newest country. The Serbian leadership is very desperate. This is extremely irritating and frustrating. On March 1, the European Parliament decided on a resolution showing “deep concern” about the Serbian position against sanctions. The resolution was approved by a large majority. I share this concern with the vast majority of my colleagues in the European Parliament. The behavior of the Serbian leadership is irritating – especially since the EU has been Serbia’s largest donor for decades and the EU has considered Serbia a candidate country for membership. While everything has been given to it, Serbia has positioned itself on the wrong side of history in these times. This is also the reason why Serbia plays a negative role in the Western Balkans at the moment. I always share my clear view that Serbia can play for the Western Balkans the role that Germany plays for all of Europe. Germany is large and economically strong. Serbia is not that big, but it is the largest country in the Western Balkans. Serbia is far from being as economically strong as Germany, but it is still the strongest country among the six countries of the Western Balkans. It would be something to take responsibility for the future opportunities for wealth, for the youth, for the prospects in the field of education for the youth in all the countries of the Western Balkans, to connect more and create more trust among the countries of the Western Balkans, but Serbia is losing all opportunities to be on the right side, for its citizens. I want to share this very important view that when we talk about these values and these opportunities and these future perspectives, we also talk about the future perspective of the citizens of Serbia. It is clear that the leadership of Serbia plays a different game. And in fact it is a terrible game”, said Mandl, among other things.
Mandl was also asked about the north of Mitrovica and ‘Republika Srpska’
“I will always contribute to an international community of the free world, which continues to care for the security of Kosovo, for the sovereignty of Kosovo, and this is the reason why I hope that we avoid more tensions and violence of any kind. I still hope that Serbia will go on a positive path and open the door for itself and the six countries of the Western Balkans for EU membership”, while he also spoke about the liberalization of visas for Kosovo.
MEP Lukas Mandl: This is clear: the European Commission has decided that all the criteria that were set to obtain visa liberalization for the people of Kosovo have been met. The European Parliament has several times decided by a large majority that it would be in favor of visa liberalization. There is still a small minority of member state governments that are blocking visa-free travel for the people of Kosovo. Many colleagues like me every day run and try to convince the decision makers in these member states that build this small minority of member states that are blocking. This is among the things that are not only overdue, but very overdue. In the bigger picture, the European Union needs to be restructured. The war of aggression against Ukraine was a wake-up call that we need to care more about Europe’s strength from abroad, about Europe’s security, about the security of all Europeans, whether they are EU citizens or Europeans who are not yet citizens of the EU. Also in the United Kingdom, in Switzerland, in Norway, in Ukraine, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova, but especially in the Western Balkans where people have been waiting for many decades now for EU integration and EU standards. As mentioned, the EU has missed many opportunities to include the Western Balkans and should do so now, as soon as possible./The Geopost