In an opinion article, former Montenegrin Deputy Prime Minister Jovana Marović argues that Montenegro’s accession process is becoming a testing ground for the European Union’s future enlargement policy. It explores how the EU is seeking to reconcile the geopolitical imperative of enlargement with growing concerns over democratic backsliding after accession. A stronger role for EU accession treaties is proposed, transforming them from technical legal instruments into frameworks that ensure the continued protection of the rule of law, judicial independence and democratic governance after membership. Future treaties could establish clear safeguard clauses, predefined compliance assessments, corrective measures and transparent financial conditionality linked to EU funds. More predictable and enforceable post-accession commitments would bridge pre-accession conditionality with post-accession oversight, strengthening both the credibility of enlargement and the resilience of European democracy. Read more here.
Source: European Western Balkans