Serbia: accession negotiations set to start

In March 2012, the European Council agreed to grant Serbia the status of candidate country, but the Council and Commission insisted that opening of membership talks was conditional on Serbia normalising its ties with Kosovo. With the deadlock broken through the signing of an EU ‐ brokered deal between Belgrade and Priština in April 2013, the European Council decided on opening accession negotiations with Serbia on 28 June 2013.

On 1 September 2013 the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) between the EU and Serbia entered into force. On 17 December 2013, the Council adopted the framework for negotiations with Serbia and agreed that the first intergovernmental conference with Serbia would take place in January 2014.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Additional funding to support the normalisation between Kosovo and Serbia http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-additional-funding-to-support-the-normalisation-between-kosovo-and-serbia/

ESO: Background information: Key findings of the Progress Report on Serbia http://www.europeansources.info/record/memo-key-findings-of-the-progress-report-on-serbia-2/

ESO: Background information: EU-Serbia: On the preparations for next steps in the accession negotiations http://www.europeansources.info/record/memo-eu-serbia-on-the-preparations-for-next-steps-in-the-accession-negotiations/

ESO: Background information: EU and Serbia: enhanced cooperation rules enter into force http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-eu-and-serbia-enhanced-cooperation-rules-enter-into-force/

ESO: Background information: Commissioner Štefan Füle in Belgrade: Serbia entering new phase of relations with the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-commissioner-stefan-fule-in-belgrade-serbia-entering-new-phase-of-relations-with-the-european-union/

ESO: Background information: Council conclusions on Enlargement and Stabilisation and Association Process http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-council-conclusions-on-enlargement-and-stabilisation-and-association-process/

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