GuiDE to EU Membership – Germany's Role in Paving the Way for Enlargement is a one-year pilot project, supported by the Open Society Foundations – Western Balkans. It aims to strengthen Germany’s commitment to and preparedness for EU enlargement, with a particular focus on Montenegro and Albania as the current frontrunner EU candidate countries in the Western Balkans. Against the backdrop of Russia’s war against Ukraine and renewed geopolitical attention to enlargement, the project addresses the gap between declaratory political support and concrete preparation, strategic communication and policy engagement within Germany and the EU.
GuiDE follows a three-pillar approach combining analysis, coalition-building, and advocacy.
Pillar I – Accession Diagnostics, analyses reform progress, EU accession negotiations, and political readiness of Montenegro and Albania. With an Accession Diagnostic Forum in Berlin and a subsequent diagnostic report, the project identifies key drivers, obstacles, and realistic pathways toward accession while increasing transparency for German stakeholders and decision-makers.
Pillar II – Coalition Building, establishes a pro-enlargement network linking German stakeholders and civil society actors with policy experts from Montenegro and Albania. Through joint activities and publications, the project promotes informed positions on enlargement and fosters a sustainable advocacy network between Germany, Montenegro, and Albania.
Pillar III – Advocacy, translates the analytical findings and coalition-building efforts into strategic political engagement, targeted political engagement at both the federal and sub-federal levels in Germany, to strengthen awareness of the political relevance and feasibility of EU enlargement.
Through this approach, GuiDE aims to foster a more informed and strategic debate in Germany on the EU accession prospects of Montenegro and Albania.
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