MEPs call for European Prosecutor's investigations in the Balkans

(Patria) - A group of Members of the European Parliament has called for the mandate of the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) to be extended to the Western Balkans.

In a letter addressed to the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, the EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi, and the Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders, they called for EPPO to conduct investigations into the use of EU funds, writes Politički.ba

This primarily applies to IPA funds, but also to NDICI, MFA, and sectoral budget support for the six countries in our region - all of which are EU taxpayer money.

Klemen Grošelj and Petras Auštrevičius, on behalf of the liberal Renew Europe group, Milan Brglez, an MEP from the Socialists and Democrats bloc, and Viola von Cramon-Taubadel, an MEP from the Greens group in the European Parliament, believe that such a measure is necessary in line with the EU's expectations that the Western Balkans region will progress on its European path.

If this does not happen, it is all the more reason to further extend EPPO's activities to the Western Balkans.

MEPs assess that the region is generally regressing on its European path. They warn of increasingly negative assessments of the state of democracy, human freedoms, and the rule of law in almost all six Western Balkan countries.

"Regression in democracy or stagnation is a challenge to our political goals, but also a growing obstacle in implementing urgently needed reforms in the Western Balkan countries.

In order to face the challenges that Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova have, we need to establish a credible conditional mechanism that prevents further regression of democracy and strengthens reform processes in countries with candidate status.

This is necessary to ensure the credibility of the EU and its enlargement process, but also to strengthen the Union's position in tense geopolitical circumstances, especially to be able to cope with undemocratic and autocratic competitors," the letter states.

They therefore believe that the EPPO's jurisdiction should be extended to all countries covered by the EU enlargement process and apply to any funds supporting the European Union's enlargement process.

"We believe that the authority of the European Public Prosecutor can prevent abuses of EU funds in candidate countries, just as it ensures in member states. At the same time, it will strengthen the rule of law and ensure the independence of investigative and prosecutorial actions related to EU funds," the letter further states.

It is also stated that all this can be realized in accordance with the initiative of the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on the phased approximation of countries that wish to join the European Union.

"EPPO's activities would represent a step within gradual integration and would be part of the cluster related to the rule of law, and would strengthen the conditions for candidate countries to access EU funds," is the stance of the Members of the European Parliament.