Engjellushe Morina

The EU's enlargement policy remains a powerful tool—but in hybrid regimes, legal reforms alone are no longer enough. Without rebuilding trust and tackling informal power structures, enlargement risks reinforcing the very systems it seeks to transform.

Jessica Hendrick takes over The Neighbourhood to unpack what the EU’s 2025 Enlargement Package reveals about both Brussels’s expectations and life inside the candidate countries

A Russia-Ukraine peace deal that capitulates to Putin risks destabilising the Western Balkans, emboldening Serbian territorial claims and undermining EU credibility

The Ukraine war has revived EU enlargement for Albania, Moldova, Montenegro and Ukraine, but they face obstacles. Accelerating membership for these frontrunners would unlock the process before rivals can take advantage

Europe’s first Enlargement Forum comes at a moment when accession is no longer just a policy process but a test of trust.

As the European Union pushes for peace in the Western Balkans, it should focus on moving the Kosovo-Serbia dialogue beyond its current impasse to establish long-lasting regional stability and deter Russian influence

Many Europeans fail to realise that EU enlargement is the only way to counter Russia and China – but this week, leaders must act

A new power audit of member states’ positions on EU enlargement shows broad agreement that it is a geopolitical necessity, but major disagreements about how to prepare the EU.