European Parliament report: Russia is creating tensions in the Western Balkans

Russia is using its influence in Serbia to destabilise and interfere in neighbouring sovereign states, according to a report adopted on 26 April by the European Parliament’s (EP) Committee on Foreign Interference.

Interference in neighbouring countries, as it were, is taking place: in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) through the Republika Srpska (RS), in Montenegro through pro-Serb sentiments in the country and the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC), and in Kosovo by exploiting or fuelling existing conflicts in the north.

They add that Russia still has significant influence in the Western Balkans and the power to interfere in regional attempts at reconciliation, integration and reforms towards democratisation.

The report on foreign interference in all democratic processes in the European Union (EU), including disinformation, underlines the need for the EU to proactively counter propaganda by malicious actors in the Western Balkans region “aimed at undermining EU interests and values”.

The 27 representatives on the Committee on Foreign Interference voted in favour of the report, one against and one abstention. In June, this report will be voted on at the plenary session, when it receives a version of the European Parliament’s Resolution.

This report assesses the Western Balkans region as an area of strategic and geopolitical competition, and highlights that some countries in the region are prone to destabilisation.

Third countries are also expected to exploit vulnerabilities, including strategic investments and disinformation campaigns; as the stability, security and democratic resilience of the acceding countries are inextricably linked to the security, stability and democratic resilience of the EU.

Dissemination through the media

According to this report, Russia’s influence in the Western Balkans should be seen as “part of a broader strategy to promote authoritarianism in Europe”.

It highlights that pro-Russian views are being spread through the Serbian and Hungarian media in the Western Balkans. Concern is expressed at recent findings that Serbia is “the most vulnerable country to malign foreign influence in the Western Balkans, especially from Russia and China” and that Serbia has not yet imposed sanctions against Russia and has not aligned itself with EU foreign policy.

The report welcomes the rapprochement of some candidate and potential candidate countries with the EU and calls on the European Commission to work more closely with Member States on the introduction and implementation of sanctions.

Condemning the opening of Russia Today Balkans

In particular, the report “strongly condemns” the opening of the Russia Today (RT) office in Belgrade and the launch of its online news service in Serbian.

This “allows this malign actor to spread his misinformation throughout the region.”

The Serbian authorities are urged to respect the decision of the EU Council to suspend the broadcasting of Sputnik and RT.

“In clear contravention of EU sanctions, Serbia, an EU candidate country, has become a safe haven for some Russian companies seeking to evade or overcome the sanctions imposed by the EU,” the adopted report stresses./RSE/