Ireland Backs Serbia’s EU Path, Says Reforms Must Follow in 2026

Ireland supports Serbia’s path toward European Union membership, but says further reforms remain essential, according to the Irish ambassador in Belgrade, Kevin Colgan. In an interview for Diplomata, he said the European Commission has assessed that Serbia has met the technical benchmarks for opening Cluster 3, while Dublin backs that assessment and wants the accession process to stay credible and merit-based.

Colgan said Ireland sees enlargement as a central part of its priorities during its Presidency of the Council of the European Union. He said the Irish government wants progress to be recognised where reforms are delivered, but that the presidency cannot impose an outcome on member states.

Rule of law and foreign policy alignment remain key issues

The ambassador said Serbia still needs to advance in several areas that appear regularly in the European Commission’s reports. He listed the rule of law, the independence and efficiency of the judiciary, public administration reform, media freedom, electoral reform, and the fight against corruption and organised crime.

He also said alignment with the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy is an essential requirement for accession. According to Colgan, Ireland will continue to encourage Serbia to move closer to the EU line on foreign and security policy.

For foreign readers, Cluster 3 refers to one of the negotiating groups in Serbia’s EU accession talks, covering competitiveness and inclusive growth. Opening such a cluster is a political step that still depends on agreement among EU member states.

Ireland links enlargement with dialogue and regional stability

Colgan said the EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina remains the only framework capable of producing lasting normalisation of relations. He said Ireland fully supports the European Union’s efforts and the work of the EU Special Representative, and called on both sides to engage constructively.

He also welcomed the recent visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Belgrade, saying it was the first visit by a Ukrainian president to Serbia in many years. He described that as a positive development and said Ireland continues to back Ukraine politically, militarily and financially.

The ambassador said Ireland supports enlargement for all countries that meet the criteria, including Serbia, Montenegro, Moldova and Ukraine. He said the process must remain merit-based, predictable and based on reforms, not fixed political promises.

Montenegro and the wider enlargement agenda

On Montenegro, Colgan said the country has made significant progress and is entering the final phase of its accession journey. He said Ireland wants to help advance work on Montenegro’s accession treaty and facilitate the closing of negotiating chapters during its presidency, but added that he would be cautious about naming a definitive date for membership.

He said the same logic applies to Ukraine and Moldova, where Ireland wants to help open the remaining negotiating clusters over the next six months. He also said the Western Balkans remains highly important for the European Union and for Ireland, and pointed to the opening of Irish embassies in Sarajevo and Belgrade as evidence of deeper engagement in the region.

Colgan concluded that countries that are ready should move forward, while the European Union should recognise genuine progress. That balance, he said, is what keeps the enlargement process credible.

For Serbia, the message from Dublin is clear: political support remains in place, but Brussels will expect concrete reforms before the next step in the accession process. The next test is whether EU member states agree to move on Cluster 3 in the coming months.

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