The Balkan Free Media Initiative - Statement on President Costa’s travels to the Western Balkans
The Balkan Free Media Initiative (BFMI) welcomes the President of the European Council António Costa’s visit to the Western Balkans this week as a vital opportunity to reaffirm that media freedom is not a peripheral issue—but a core requirement for EU accession, regional democracy, and European security.
Last week's European Parliament reports on Serbia and on Kosovo highlight the urgent and escalating need for media reform, the absence of which sees the continuous destabilisation of democracy in the region.
In its report on Serbia, the EP warns that disinformation fueled by domestic and Russian sources—proliferated by state-controlled media and amplified online—continues to entrench authoritarian rule in Serbia and endanger neighboring countries. The EP also rightly called for a complete overhaul of Serbia’s media regulator, the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Media (REM), whose persistent failure to enforce legal standards has enabled propaganda, stifled dissent, and eroded public trust.
In its report on Kosovo, the EP called for greater transparency on media ownership and financing; robust measures to protect journalists from harassment and intimidation and strategic lawsuits against public participation; and the revision of the Law on the Independent Media Commission (IMC) to ensure the full independence of Kosovo’s media regulator and alignment with key recommendations from the Council of Europe.
BFMI welcomes calls by the EP to increase support for independent media and fact-checkers to fight disinformation, promote public trust, and improve media literacy in Kosovo, as well as the recommendation to reprogram funding–including from the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans–to better support independent media in Serbia in their ongoing fight for democracy.
As prospects for media freedom in Serbia continue to deteriorate rapidly and the government further diverges from the EU’s foreign and security policy, BFMI urges President Costa to continue a dialogue with Serbia that upholds media pluralism as fundamental to accession, democracy, and security.
President Costa’s visit is crucial at this juncture, offering the European Council a pivotal opportunity to press these issues with officials and reaffirm the need for immediate, meaningful reform to safeguard democratic integrity and regional stability.
