Meet Your Neighbor – the European Parliamentarian

The project aims at linking the national Parliament of the Republic of Serbia with MPs from the European Parliament and representatives of the Serbian civil society with the neighboring EU member states (Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria) in a constructive and tailor-made dialogue on current issues relevant to the EU and the EU accession process of Serbia.

Three EU neighboring countries (Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria) have 71 MEPs. Presuming that they are more familiar with the situation in the Western Balkans, this great potential should be strengthened, since it is important for the countries themselves and the advancement of the cooperation. This potential provides much needed support in Serbia's EU integration process.

In the first phase of implementation, a public discussion was organized in Subotica in September 2010 with two Hungarian MEPs, a representative of a civil society organization from Hungary and MPs from the National Parliament of the Republic of Serbia. Similar events will be organized with two Romanian MEPs in Zrenjanin and two Bulgarian MEPs in Nis.

The project envisages the organization of a joint meeting in Belgrade, which will gather together all the participants and provide an opportunity for further discussion about greater cooperation among countries in the region and between members of the European Parliament and the Parliament of the Republic of Serbia.

In the final phase of the project, the Serbian MPs will visit the European Parliament.

The project is supported by the Balkan Trust for Democracy and the Fund for an Open Society.