The European Union has warned Western Balkan countries they risk losing more than €700mn in growth package funding unless stalled reforms are accelerated, Radio Free Europe (RFE) reported on April 20.

European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos told the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee on April 20 that funding under the EU Growth Plan is performance-based and time-limited, with key deadlines expiring by mid-2026.

According to RFE, Kos sent a letter on April 17 to the six Western Balkan capitals urging faster progress on reforms tied to the programme.

The warning applies to Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia. Potential losses range from €15.1mn for Montenegro to as much as €373.9mn for Bosnia & Herzegovina, according to RFE sources.

Serbia, which has repeatedly come under EU criticism over rule-of-law concerns and its foreign policy alignment, could lose between €108.7mn and €135.9mn.

Kos appeared to soften earlier messaging that had specifically targeted Belgrade, broadening the pressure across the region rather than singling out one country.

Serbian media, including independent broadcaster N1, had expected a more explicit reduction in its allocation.

Kos had told Reuters in February that up to €1.5bn in EU funds for Serbia could be suspended over controversial judicial reforms, a message she repeated to Politico earlier this month. 

The EU Growth Plan, a €6bn package designed to accelerate convergence with the bloc’s single market, is intended to double the size of Western Balkan economies over the next decade. 

The Western Balkans were first promised a path to EU membership at the 2003 Thessaloniki summit, but none of the six countries has joined since Croatia in 2013.