DECONSTRUCTING THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION’S DISCOURSE ON SERBIA’S ACCESSION PROCESS
A Critical Discourse Analysis on the Annual Progress Reports from 2010 to 2021
Abstract
This article enquires into the evolution of the European Commission’s discourse with respect to rule of law, corruption and media development in Serbia during period 2010–2021. The study performs a critical discourse analysis with use of discourse historical approach on the annual progress reports published by the European Commission. The study uncovers that the progress reports shows patterns of both continuity and change. The topics and subtopics related to rule of law, corruption and media represents large patterns of continuity. Some new topics, mostly negative ones, have arisen during the period, but the criteria and form of evaluation seems stable. The intensification strategy in the discourse the last four years seems not to be enough to transform the EU accession process, and it seems that Serbia lacks motivation on their road to accession.
References
Amoussou, Franck, Allagbe, Ayodele. 1/2018. Principles, Theories and Approaches to Critical Discourse Analysis. International Journal on Studies in English Language and Literature 6: 11–18.
ATLAS.ti. What is ATLAS.ti?. https://atlasti.com/product/what-is-atlas-ti/ (last visited 01.04.2022.)
Aydın-Düzgit, Senem. 3/2014. Critical discourse analysis in analysing European Union foreign policy: Prospects and challenges. Discourse Analysis and EU Foreign Policy: 354–367.
Bajic, Dragana, Wouter Zweers. 2020. The EU: defender of media freedom in Serbia?. Haag: Clingendael Institute.
Bechev, Dimitar. 2021. The Russian Challenge in Southeast Europe. 187–216 in European-Russian Power Relations in Turbulent Times, edited by Mai’a
K. Davis Cross and Ireneusz Pawel Karolewski. Michigan: University of Michigan Press.
Bieber, Florian. 2020. The Rise of Authoritarianism in the Western Balkans. Cham: Palgrave Macmillian.
Choi, Naomi. 2019. Rule of law. https://www.britannica.com/topic/rule-of-law (last visited 20.11.2022.)
Crespy, Amandine. 2015. Analysing European Discourses. 102–120 in Methods in European Union Studies, edited by Kennet Lynggaard, Ian
Manners, Karl Löfgren. London: Palgrave.
Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs. Corruption. https://ec.europa.eu/homeaffairs/corruption_en (last visited 1.04.2022.)
Domachowska, Agata. 2021. The Status of the European Integration Process of the Western Balkan Countries. Studia Europejskie – Studies in European Affairs: 67–82.
Economides, Spyros. 2020. From Fatigue to Resistance: EU Enlargement and the Western Balkans. https://www.dahrendorf-forum.eu/publications/
from-fatigue-to-resistance-eu-enlargement-and-the-western-balkans/ (last visited 1.11.2022.)
Drapalova, Eliska. 2019. Corruption and the crisis of democracy: The link between corruption and the weakening of democratic institutions. Transparency International.
EU Delegation to Serbia. 2022. Main trade partners of Serbia in 2021. https://europa.rs/trade/?lang=en (last visited 1.11.2022.)
Eurobarometer. 2017. Businesses’ Attitudes towards Corruption in the EU. https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/2177 (last visited 1.11.2022.)
European Commission. 2021. Enlargement package: European Commission assesses and sets out reform priorities for the Western Balkans and Turkey. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_21_5275 (last visited 1.04.2022.)
European Commission. European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations: Serbia. https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhoodenlargement/enlargement–policy/negotia–tions-status/serbia_en (last visited 1.03.2022.)
European Commission. European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotations: Accession criteria. https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhoodenlargement/enlargement–policy/ glossary/accession-criteria_en (last visited 1.03.2022.)
European Commission. European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations: Acquis. https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhoodenlargement/enlargement–policy/glossary/ acquis_en (last visited 1.03.2022.)
EuropeanCommission. 2014. Serbia Progress Report 2014. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. 2003. Eu-Western Balkans Summit Thessaloniki. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/PRES_03_163 (last visited 1.04.2022.)
European Commission. 2010. Serbia Progress Report 2010. European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations. https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood– enlargement/2010-progress– report-serbia_en (last visited 1.02.2022.)
European Commission. 2011. Commission Opinion on Serbia’s application for membership of the European Union. Brussels: EU.
European Commission. 2011. Serbia Progress Report 2011. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. 2013. Serbia Progress Report 2013. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. 2014. Rule of law framework: Annexes to the Communication. https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/default/files/com_2014_158_annexes_en.pdf (last visited 1.04.2022.)
European Commission. 2015. Serbia Report 2015. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. 2016. Serbia Progress Report 2016. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. 2018. Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Protection of the Union’s Budget in Case of Generalised Deficiencies as Regards the Rule of Law in the Member States. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/ (last visited 1.04.2022.)
European Commission. 2018. Serbia Progress Report 2018. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. 2019. Serbia Progress Report 2019. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. 2020. Serbia Progress Report 2020. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. 2021. Serbia Progress Report 2021. Brussel: European Commission.
European Commission. European Commission: Enlargement: Candidate Countries and Potential Candidates. https://ec.europa.eu/environment/enlarg/candidates.htm (last visited 1.05.2022.)
European Commssion. 2012. Serbia Progress Report 2012. Brussel: European Commission.
Freedom House. 2022. Freedom in the World 2022: Serbia. https://freedomhouse.org/country/serbia/freedom-world/2022 (last visited 1.05.2022.)
Grzegorczyk, Marek. 2021. Emerging Europe: Serbia takes ‘significant’ step to– wards the EU, but must resolve Kosovo dispute. https://emergingeurope.com/news/serbia-takes-significant-step-towards-the-eu-but-mustresolve-kosovo-dispute/ (last visited 1.11.2022.)
Hajer, Maarten A. 1995. The Politics of Environmental Discourse: Ecological Modernization and the Policy Process. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Huckin, Thomas., Jennifer Andrus, Jennifer Clary-Lemon. 2012. Critical Discourse Analysis and Rhetoric and Composition. College Composition
and Communication, 64(1), 107–129.
Huszka, Beáta. 2020. The Power of Perspective: Why EU Membership Still Matters in the Western Balkans. European Council on Foreign Relations http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep21645 (Last visited 30.11.2022)
Kmezic, Marko. 2015. The Western Balkans and EU Enlargement: Lessons learned, ways forward and prospects ahead. Brussels: Directorate-General For External Policies: Policy Department.
Kmezic, Marko. 2019. Rule of law and democracy in the Western Balkans: addressing the gap between policies and practice. Graz: Southeast European and Black Sea Studies.
Kryzanowski, Michal. 1/2015. International leadership re-/constructed?: Ambivalence and heterogeneity of identity discourses in European Union’s policy on climate change. Journal of Language and Politics. 14: 110–133.
Lynggaard, Kenneth. 2019. Discourse Analysis and European Union Politics. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Neale, Bren. 2016. Crafting qualitative longitudinal research: Design and sampling. 45–68 in What is Qualitative Longitudinal Research?. London: Bloomsbury Academic.
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. 2020. EU contribution on EU-level anti-corruption policy/practice. https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/Documents/Issues/Corruption/Challenges/EU.pdf (last visited 29.11.2022.)
Qalliu, Bledar. 2022. Exit News: MEPs Urge EU to Freeze Serbia’s Accession Talks over Putin Support. https://exit.al/en/2022/03/14/mepsurge-eu-to-freeze-serbias-accession-talks– over-putin-support/ (last visited 01.03.2022.)
Rankin, Jennifer. 2018. The Guardian: Serbia and Montenegro could join EU in 2025, says Brussels. https:// www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/06/serbia-and-montenegro– could– join-eu-in-2025-says-brussels (last visited 01.03.2022.)
Schmidt, Vivien. A. 1/2008. Discursive Institutionalism: The Ex– planatory Power of Ideas and Discourse. Annual Review of Political Science 11: 303–326.
Sekulić, Tatjana. 2021. The European Union and the Paradox of Enlargement: The Complex Accession of the Western Balkans. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan.
The Government of the Republic of Serbia. 2020. Statements of Government: Serbian government adopts media strategy. https://www.srbija.gov.rs/vest/en/149736/serbian-gov– ernment-adopts-media– strategy.php (last visited 01.03.2022)
The Government of the Republic of Serbia. Strategy for the Development of Artificial Intelligence in the Republic of Serbia for the period 2020–2025. https://www.media.srbija.gov.rs/medsrp/dokumenti/strategy_artificial_intelligence.pdf (last visited 01.03.2022)
Tjora, Aksel. 2017. Kvalitative Forskningsmetoder i praksis. Oslo: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag.
Tonchev, Plamen. 2017. European Union Istitute for Security Studies: China’s Road: into the Western Balkans. Brussels: European Union Institute for Security Studies.
Transparency International. 2022. What Is Corruption? https://www.transparency.org/en/ what-is-corruption (last visited 01.03.2022.)
Universität Duisburg-Essen: Institut für Politikwissenschaft. 2021. Fakultät für Gesellschaftswissenschaften: Progress Report Monitor. https://www.unidue.de/politik/ progmonitor.php (last visited 01.03.2022)
UNODC. 2011. Corruption in Serbia: Bribery as Experienced by the Population. https://www.unodc.org/documents/data-andanalysis/statistics/corruption/Serbia_corruption_report_web.pdf (last visited 01.05.2022)
Van Dijk, Teun. 1993. Principles of Critical Discourse Analysis. http://das.sagepub.com/content/4/2/249 (last visited 15.03.2022)
Wodak, Ruth. 2009. The Discourse of Politics in Action: Politics as Usual. London: Routledge.
Wodak, Ruth. 2014. Critical Discourse Analysis, Discourse-Historical Approach. The International Encyclopedia of Language and Social Interaction. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9781118611463.wbielsi116 (last visited 29.11.2022)
Wodak, Ruth., Martin Reisigl. 2017. The Discourse-Historical Approach (DHA). https://www.researchgate.net/publication/251636976_The_Discourse-Historical_Approach_DHA (last visited 01.05.2022)
