Page 145 - SEVEN STEPS for COMPREHENDING the EUROPEAN UNION

144 / SEVEN STEPS FOR COMPREHENDING THE EUROPEAN UNION

- The Stabilization and Association process for Serbia, Albania,
Montenegro, Northern Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina
and Kosovo;

- The Eastern Partnership Initiative for Georgia, Ukraine,
Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus.
Further comparative analysis of the two policies will help
readers, on one hand, to comprehend the EU’s approach towards its
neighborhood and, on the other hand, clarify the “location” of the
Eastern Partnership participant states on the EU accession trajectory
before 2022. The analysis will also help to highlight the factors which
shaped the “Unexpected” nature of the current EU enlargement.

Stabilization and Association Process for the
Western Balkans

The Stabilization and Association Process was initiated in 1999 and took
its final shape by 2003. It has been serving three main objectives:

- Ensuring stability in Western Balkan states;
- Promoting regional cooperation among Western Balkan
states;
- Accession of the Western Balkan states to the European
Union. 106

The objectives have been clearly specified in the text of the
107
declaration of the EU-Western Balkan Thessaloniki Summit of 2003.
The declaration reads that: “The EU reiterates its unequivocal support
to the European perspective of the Western Balkan countries” and that
“Preparation for integration into European structures and ultimate
membership into the European Union, through the adoption of
European standards, is now the big challenge ahead.”

For achieving the above-mentioned objectives; most importantly,
106 Stabilization and Association Process
https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/policy/glossary/terms/sap_en
107
EU-Western Balkans Summit Thessaloniki, 21 June 2003
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/PRES_03_163