EU foreign policy—including regarding enlargement—is so incompetent that we can no longer take seriously the statements we hear in this regard. This was stated by Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili, responding to remarks by Marta Kos, the European Commissioner for Enlargement, who said that countries aspiring to join the EU must sever ties with Donald Trump's MAGA movement in order to become members of the organization.

According to Papuashvili, the statement was made by Marta Kos specifically with Serbia in mind, as elections are taking place there in October.

Papuashvili asserts that this statement constitutes an attempt to interfere in Serbia's elections.

“It has become laughable. These are sovereign nations—not yet EU members, but candidates—and attempts are being made to issue direct ultimatums regarding their foreign policy and external relations. First it was China; now the United States has been added. The EU’s foreign policy—including its approach to enlargement—is so inept that we can no longer take the statements we hear on this matter seriously. This statement effectively amounts to a public call to avoid relations with the United States and its administration. How, then, can we possibly take this seriously?

This statement was made with Serbia specifically in mind, as a conference is set to take place there soon involving participants from this movement. Elections are scheduled in Serbia for October, and this signal represents yet another attempt to interfere in the electoral process. I am certain that further attempts by Brussels to interfere in Serbia’s elections will follow, just as there were attempts to interfere in Georgia’s elections. If there is such a thing as a European value, it certainly includes respecting another country’s sovereignty and people's sovereign choice—principles that Brussels is currently trampling upon by directly interfering in elections. The 2024 elections serve as the prime example of such interference in Georgia’s electoral process—conducted in a crude manner and employing the very 'Russian methods' they are so fond of criticizing," Papuashvili stated.

Notably, EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos stated that candidate countries must sever links with Donald Trump’s MAGA movement in order to join the European Union.

"We should not risk our future members building dependencies on others that run counter to our long-term interest," Kos said at an event organized by the Centre for European Policy Studies.