Bojana Zorić on Serbia's democratic decline and how the EU can avoid the same mistakes it made with Georgia

Bojana Zorić spoke to the New Union Post about the similarities and differences in democratic backsliding in Georgia and Serbia, and the lessons the EU can draw from its delayed response to developments in Georgia to prevent Serbia from following a similar path.

"The key lesson is the importance of acting in time," she argued. "The EU should not wait until democratic backsliding develops into a deep institutional crisis before using the instruments at its disposal."

Even though Serbia has not yet reached the same degree of institutional closure as Georgia, one of the most important parallels is the way democratic erosion unfolds in these countries: not as a single dramatic event, but rather "a gradual weakening of institutions, concentration of political power, and an increasingly pronounced blurring of state and party interests."

Read the full analysis in the Brief, 'Too little, too late? Georgia's lessons for Serbia and EU leverage', co-written by Bojana and Tefta Kelmendi.