(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - A large portion of the Serbian population is in favour of their country becoming a member of the European Union (EU), according to a poll by the Strategic Marketing & Media Research Institute. 69.3 per cent of respondents support the EU accession, while 30.7 per cent oppose it.

The remnants of the Yugoslav Federation were transformed into Serbia and Montenegro in February 2003. Last year, Montenegro became an independent state with full international and legal subjectivity.

Serbia's talks to join the 27-member continental group were suspended from May 2006 to June 2007. EU authorities decided to stop negotiations, citing Serbia's alleged lack of cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). Two Serb fugitives—co-founder of the Serb Democratic Party (SDS) Radovan Karadzic and army commander Ratko Mladic—have been signalled as the architects of ethnic cleansing in Bosnia, and still face genocide charges. Serbia has failed to deliver the two accused men to the ICTY.

In June, the Serbian government extradited Bosnian Serb fugitive Zdravko Tolimir to The Hague, and EU authorities decided to resume talks on Serbia's EU prospects, warning that negotiations will not conclude until Karadzic and Mladic are arrested.

On Jul. 31, Tanja Miscevic, Serbian director of the EU Integration Office, commented on the results of this particular poll, saying, "Most people associate EU membership with better living standards, prosperity, and freedom of movement, (but) are insufficiently informed about the accession process and conditions for EU membership."

Polling Data

Do you support or oppose Serbia's accession into the European Union (EU)?

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