Challenges for EU enlargement in a post-Covid scenario

Today, stating that the EU enlargement towards the Western Balkan countries is in a stalemate amounts to a cliché. The number of declarations, summits, initiatives and pleas from Brussels and some member states has only reinforced a growing frustration, as deeds have not followed words and the commitment to the region’s “European perspective” remains half-baked – the case of the Bulgarian veto to the opening of North Macedonia’s Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) only strengthened such gloomy picture.

This policy brief looks at how to put the process of enlargement back into the European Union’s agenda in a post-Covid environment, to prevent a further detachment of the Western Balkan states form the Eu, and taking advantage of the new financing opportunities of the period 2021-27. It also look at the role that European progressives should play in order to make European accession a credible prospect for the WB 6.