Speakers

Florian Bieber, Director of the Centre for Southeast European Studies, University of Graz
 
Nikolaos Tzifakis, Associate Professor, University of the Peloponnese 

Allan Jones, Head of Unit Strategy and Policy, Directorate General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, European Commission

Corina Stratulat, Senior Policy Analyst, European Policy Centre (Moderator)

At the European Council summit in October, the EU member states once again failed to reach a decision on opening accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia. This time, the impasse seems long-term, with some member states even calling for a wholesale reform of the enlargement process, pointing to the need to foster deeper integration among existing members before widening the Union. At the same time, a new Commission is still taking shape in Brussels.
 
The upcoming Croatian Presidency will have to lay the groundwork for the next EU-Western Balkan summit, to be held in Zagreb in May 2020. Between now and that meeting, EU enlargement policy could be rebooted. How can the sceptical member states be brought round? If the enlargement process has to change, what could this change look like? And in the meantime, how can the EU keep open the membership perspective for the Western Balkans and continue to address the ongoing challenges in the region? This Policy Dialogue will discuss these and other issues. A new BiEPAG Policy Brief on the subject will be presented as input to the discussion.