Efficiency of the Identity-Sensitive EU Conditionality: A Case of Serbia and the Sanctions Pressuring

Abstract

This paper deals with new developments in the EU integration of Serbia after the Russian fully-fledged invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. It attempts to analyse the contextual setting and efficiency of sanctions pressuring by the EU directed at Serbia. The key leading question regards the extent of the efficiency of conditionality in cases sensitive to national identity. The research comes up with a comparative analysis and juxtaposes the case of sanctions pressuring with conditionality regarding cooperation with the ICTY and normalisation of relations between Belgrade and Pristina within the Brussels Agreement. This study is based on empirical research and 22 interviews conducted during fieldwork in Belgrade (March-April 2023) and Brussels (May 2023), involving the perspectives of NGOs, experts, academics, and representatives of governmental and EU institutions.