If a referendum were held today, 56.4% of Serbian citizens with a clear position on the issue would vote in favour of Serbia joining the European Union (EU).
Support for EU membership is strongest among highly educated citizens and declines with lower levels of education. Serbia’s European path is most strongly supported by young people aged 18 to 29, while support is weakest among those over 60.
At the same time, almost one in four citizens believes that Serbia will never join the EU, while only 6.9% believe accession will take place before 2030.
These findings come from a survey conducted by the Centre for European Policy (CEP). Analysts familiar with the issue say the results are not surprising and that the pessimism expressed by part of the population is also understandable.
Young people most supportive of EU membership
CEP researcher Ana Milinković said that the significantly higher level of support among young people can primarily be explained by their value orientation.
“They tend to be more liberal and open-minded, so this difference should not necessarily be attributed to age itself, but rather to values and, to some extent, the political preferences of younger generations,” Milinković said.
She added that both Serbia and the EU would benefit from enlargement.
“As far as Serbia is concerned, the main advantages would be access to larger EU funds. The EU, meanwhile, would gain more indirect benefits, such as access to the Serbian market and greater geopolitical influence. These aspects are often highlighted in the media, while the assistance Serbia already receives through the accession process tends to go unnoticed and is rarely associated with the process itself,” Milinković told RTS.
Declining trust in the EU
Milinković also pointed to growing public scepticism regarding the EU’s intentions towards Serbia during the enlargement process.
“Less than one-third of citizens believe that the EU genuinely wants Serbia to become a member, that the EU is a reliable partner for Serbia, or that it treats all candidate countries equally. Public perceptions of the EU’s credibility are declining across almost all indicators. This lack of trust is naturally reflected in lower support for EU membership,” she added.
What is causing the pessimism?
Commenting on survey results showing that nearly one in four citizens believes Serbia will never join the EU, while only 6.9% expect membership before 2030, Milinković said the pessimism has two main sources.
On the one hand, there is Brussels and the European integration process itself, which many citizens see as lengthy and exhausting. As a result, people have lost motivation. In addition, candidate countries were given certain promises that many citizens feel have not been fulfilled, contributing further to the pessimistic outlook.
Vučić questions the findings
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić also commented on the survey, saying he had seen different polling results and questioning the methodology behind the published data.
“Which Centre for European Policy is this? I have seen different research, whose methodology I trust. When you say 56.4%, you have to explain how many respondents had a clear position, how confident they were in their answers, and what methodology was used. There are many factors involved. How can they know how people would be encouraged to vote for one side or the other? There are more unknowns than they seem to assume. It is not quite as straightforward as that,” Vučić said.
“The EU is not relaxing its conditions, but it is looking at the bigger picture”
Career diplomat Dragana Filipović told NIN that the survey results were not surprising.
“When it comes to Serbian citizens’ attitudes towards the EU, the common assumption that support is low does not fully reflect reality when people are actually asked to decide whether they would vote for or against membership. The strongest support comes from those aged between 18 and 30, as well as people under 60 more generally, because they clearly share European values and are already aligned with the EU on issues such as the rule of law, the fight against corruption and freedom of expression.
“Young people do not want to be held back or subjected to additional conditions by Brussels because of the long-standing and unsuccessful policies of the domestic political elite, which many of them actively oppose. Their goal is the establishment of functional institutions based on the rule of law. Brussels should recognise and value this part of society as a key driver of healthy and mutually beneficial relations with the EU.
“There is also a growing understanding in Brussels that the EU’s attractiveness alone is no longer sufficient to persuade societies in transition to embrace the European path, and after a long period of stagnation, the EU is now presenting new initiatives,” Filipović said.
The Tivat summit and the Western Balkans
According to Filipović, the recent summit in Tivat demonstrated that the central question is how to accelerate the accession process for Western Balkan countries.
“Strategically speaking, and as a consequence of the emerging global political landscape, the Balkans have effectively been left to Europe and the EU, and the countries of the region have little real influence over this reality.
“Some countries, such as Montenegro and Albania, have recognised the political momentum and chosen to embrace it, each in its own way. Cooperation with the Western Balkans is expected to be based on a clear alignment with EU values and policies.
“The Franco-German proposal to accelerate the accession of Western Balkan countries opens new opportunities according to each country’s level of preparedness for integration into the EU’s political, economic and value-based system. It places the rule of law and alignment with Brussels’ foreign and security policy at the centre of the process.
“The EU is not relaxing its accession conditions, but it is looking at the broader picture and setting priorities. For example, without measurable progress in combating corruption, there can be no access to the European market,” Filipović explained.
She added that the war in Ukraine had fundamentally changed Brussels’ approach towards the Western Balkans and had, paradoxically, given new momentum to integrating the region into the EU framework.
“At the Tivat summit, a new model of integration for Western Balkan countries was presented because changing global circumstances required a new response from Brussels, with the primary objective of consolidating its security, economic and political space. All of this gives us reason to be optimistic that Serbia will identify its own clear interests in a phased integration process into what remains Europe’s most important institution,” Filipović concluded.
The Franco-German plan
EU enlargement has once again become a priority in Brussels due to changing geopolitical circumstances. It was one of the key topics at the EU–Western Balkans summit held in Tivat in early June, ahead of which a Franco-German non-paper was circulated.
France and Germany are proposing a new accession strategy that would allow candidate countries, including those of the Western Balkans and Moldova, to participate gradually in certain EU policies and institutions even before obtaining full membership.
The proposal envisages giving candidate countries greater opportunities to join EU programmes and gain access to the single market before formally joining the Union. It also raises the possibility of allowing representatives from Western Balkan countries and Moldova to attend parts of EU ministerial meetings and summits, albeit without voting rights.
At the same time, France and Germany stress that this approach is not intended as a substitute for full membership, nor as a means of delaying accession. Rather, it is designed to provide additional incentives for faster reforms and to accelerate the EU enlargement process.
(NIN, 18.06.2026)
https://www.nin.rs/politika/vesti/116003/kakvo-je-raspolozenje-gradana-o-clanstvu-srbije-u-eu