While Rompuy visited Croatia, he told that the country would become the second state from the region to enter the EU after Slovenia’s inclusion in 2004. Croatia’s entry to the EU seemed to be likely soon as indicated in the words of the president, he said, “Croatia’s joining the EU will give a positive signal to the region by proving that the accession to the EU is attainable.”

Incidentally, Croatia’s EU accession negotiations started five years ago, and only after Rompuy assumed office in December 2009 they gained some steam. However, the Daily Delo, a leading Slovenian newspaper has questioned the president’s earnestness of the integration of the region to the EU zone.

On the contrary, while Rompuy visited Belgrade the Serbian President Boris Tadic expressed dissatisfaction with the decelerated process of the EU integration as he felt it was crucial for the future of the West Balkans. The Serbian business community has often complained about the problems they faced without the ticket to the EU despite they produced low cost quality goods.

Rompuy reiterated that progress in European integration primarily depended on each candidate’s own merit and performance. Nonetheless, it has to be seen whether the merit mantra would alone work as an expansion model to the EU as it may also rely on solving the ongoing financial crisis which quaked the EU after showing signs of recovery from the global meltdown.

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The ESI statement said except Macedonia none of the other Western Balkan states were able to meet the benchmarks to come under visa-free regime. The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’s speedy liberalization process in the areas including document security, internal stability, re-enforcement of the borders in terms of asylum and migration and strict adherence to human rights issues makes them eligible candidate for visa-free travel across the EU states. Besides, the country is understood to have issued 40 percent biometric passports, a mandate needed to be fulfilled by all EU member-states by July this year.

Macedonians spend 5mn Euros every year on Schengen visas which help them to travel across 15 countries in the EU. Visa-free travel is expected to eliminate not only the expenses incurred while application but also the cumbersome procedure involved in obtaining visa to each and every country of one’s travel.

It should be recalled that last month, foreign Ministers of Italy, Poland, Slovenia, Hungary, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania sent a joint letter to the EC urging them to include all Western Balkan states that met the criteria to the visa-free regime by early 2010. Visa liberalization to these countries is expected to boost trade and tourism of several European countries closer to these states.

Only country that has visa-free access among the Western Balkans is Croatia. Though Serbia has met all the benchmarks of the roadmap is being held up by the Netherlands over Belgrade’s cooperation with an international war crimes court. However, since last year the Serbians enjoy the ease of obtaining visas to students, athletes, journalists, people visiting family or working with companies in the EU.

The visa restrictions were imposed as an aftermath of Yugoslav wars in 1990’s. Currently, the citizens of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia need visas to travel to the EU.

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