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Judging by the accelerated development of the digital yuan, modern digital technologies could reshape the world’s monetary and financial order, accelerating changes in the current geopolitical constellation. In this new constellation, Beijing and other new geopolitical actors could gain far greater relative importance than they have now. Although the United States and the countries of the Eurozone would retain privileged positions, China and larger developing countries would come to a situation where, by participating in global monetary flows, they would take over part of the benefits brought by their own currency, mainly due to technological innovations in the field of finance. Additionally, their own payment systems and currencies, accelerated by technological innovation, could enable the developing countries to avoid Washington’s primary and secondary sanctions more easily than before.

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The paper deals with the analysis of content related to the process of accession of the Western Balkans countries to the European Union (EU) and the review of the EU accession process of countries that, in the meantime, became full members of this organisation in the period from 2004 to 2007. The paper analyses the historical aspects of the European integration process in order to use the experiences of other countries that could be of importance for the European integration process of the Western Balkan countries. Also, the paper discusses the key factors of the EU’s eastern enlargement strategy and, in this context, Poland as a case study, whose experiences can be valuable in assessing the perspective and challenges that the Western Balkans countries may still face in the process of European integration. The author analytically studies the determinants of the EU enlargement policy and presents his assessment of the provision of European preaccession assistance to candidate countries. Finally, in the context of the implementation of transitional reforms in the Western Balkans process, the author also points to the basic narrative of European integration, which includes a prediction of its future course and an overview of the current contradictions that condition the EU accession process.

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At the global level, and even at the EU level, there is a very negative trend of increased recidivism and re-commission of criminal acts by the same perpetrators. It is mainly about similar criminal acts, which speaks of the existence of a special criminal return in which the perpetrators of criminal acts specialise in the execution of the same and similar criminal acts. The practice mentioned indicates that these are persons who find their profession and the source of their personal existence in the execution of criminal acts. With such perpetrators of criminal acts, no penological measure gives results; the effects of resocialization are generally absent or quite minor. Therefore, according to the author’s research, special attention should be paid to the introduction of new penological methods, the construction of a new approach to convicts, and the creation of new mechanisms for the resocialization of convicts. The starting point must be the personality of the convict, his characteristics and traits, but also his character. To get a better result and a lower number of returnees in reality, penological approaches should only be used when we understand what kind of person the offender is. Through a comparative analysis of the situation in the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Croatia, as an EU member state, the author points to the existing practice and possible penal alternatives.

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One of the objectives of the functioning of the EU is the unification of the rules of court procedure, that is, international legal assistance, which, among other things, refers to the cross-border exchange of documents and data concerning court and other cases. In the 1992 Treaty establishing the EU, this issue was more closely defined, and in the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam, judicial cooperation was included within the First Pillar of the EU, which enabled the adoption of acts that have a supranational character in this area. Given that this is a very important component of the functioning of court proceedings with an element abroad, there was a need to define instruments that will contribute to the efficient exchange of documentary and informational data. One of those instruments is digitization, which contributed to the development of the e-justice system and later to the establishment and development of the e-CODEX system. Regulation 2022/850 of the European Parliament and of the Council of May 30, 2022, on a computerised system for the cross-border electronic exchange of data in the area of judicial cooperation in civil and criminal matters, ensures effective access to justice by citizens and legal entities. The regulation was adopted to improve judicial cooperation in civil, commercial, and criminal matters between member states. This Regulation established the e- CODEX system, which defines the electronic exchange of data, which includes any content that can be transmitted in electronic form. In the paper, the author pays special attention to the analysis of the e-CODEX system and e-justice and their importance for the Republic of Serbia.

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Digital services are present in our lives every day, facilitating communication, doing business, and more. The use of online services has made it easier for businesses to trade across national borders, bringing them more revenue and access to new markets. Besides the many advantages that digital services have brought, there are also problems reflected in the trade in illegal goods and illegal content on the Internet. Digital services are abused by Internet platforms using manipulative algorithmic systems for targeted marketing, spreading misinformation, or using other means for harmful purposes. Internet platforms, in the absence of legal regulations for all areas, have begun to regulate this digital world themselves, thus endangering the basic rights on the Internet. At the EU level, there were significant legal gaps in this area that had to be filled. Therefore, two acts were passed: “The Law on Digital Markets” and “The Law on Digital Services”. The “Law on Digital Services”, which was adopted by Regulation (EU) 2022/2065, is the subject of this paper. Adopting a modern legal code on digital services, the EU has laid the legal foundations that should enable users’ safety online, establishing governance with the protection of the fundamental rights of users of digital services, both individual consumers and businesses.

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In the modern international community, no country can achieve its economic security alone. The national interests of the European Union member states presuppose the minimization of economic risks arising from trade, business, and financial transactions with third countries that have not been aligned with their public policies. In the context of new global geopolitical tensions, the competent authorities of the European Union decided to adopt a comprehensive European Economic Security Strategy. In a joint announcement of June 20, 2023, the need for coordinated action to achieve European economic and security interests was emphasised. The realisation of these interests includes the promotion of one’s own competitiveness, protection from economic risks, and strengthening of partnerships with all countries that share the concern regarding the achievement of European Economic Security. The measures the European Union will undertake for this purpose should follow the principles of proportionality and precision to limit the unwanted effects not only on the European but also on the entire world economy.

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Within its institutions, the European Union adopts numerous autochthonous documents necessary for its operation and support of certain countries. In doing so, the EU budget with projected revenues and expenditures intended for the functioning of the planned structural segments of the group is of essential importance. The main goal of allocating funds from the budget is to provide financial assistance to states for the purpose of implementing projects in the domain of public policy. This includes investments in the function of ensuring regional development in the form of support for domestic sources, with permanent monitoring of the use of given resources. A balanced regional development of regions and local communities plays a key role in the EU integration process. The regional development of the Republic of Serbia is thus financed not only from the republican budget, the budgets of autonomous provinces, cities, and local selfgovernment units, but also through EU pre-accession funds. EU pre-accession funds intended for countries that are potential EU candidates aim to facilitate the economic and social transformation that accession to the Union implies. The institutional framework for the development of the regional policy of the Republic of Serbia, as well as the previous use of pre-accession funds for the purpose of balanced regional development, are the subject of consideration in this paper.

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This work aims to determine and present the basic elements of the European Union Action Plan on Organic Production from 2021 to 2027. The methods used in this research are text analysis, the comparative method, the formallegal method, and the statistical method. After the introduction and presentation of the overall measures brought by this document, the paper content is presented in three sections: 1) Stimulating demand and ensuring consumer confidence; 2) Stimulating conversion and strengthening the value chain; and 3) Improving the contribution to the sustainability of organic agriculture. In the section that pertains to assessing the significance of this EU regulation in the relevant area of the Republic of Serbia, a comparison was made with the Strategy of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Republic of Serbia for the period from 2014 to 2024 in the part that relates to organic production, bearing in mind the relevant statistical data in our country at the time. Namely, this Strategy states that after the implementation of incentives to promote organic production, a constant increase in the number of producers and areas where organic production methods are applied was observed. However, as stated, the domestic market for organic products remains underdeveloped due to insufficient efforts made thus far in educating producers and consumers and promoting organic products. At the same time, one of the strategic goals of this Strategy was to increase the area under organic production by 33 percent in the observed period until 2024. Therefore, in line with adopting the Strategy for Agricultural Development in the next ten years, a national action plan on developing organic production should be adopted to improve organic production in our country, following the abovementioned EU action plan.

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The integration of the Republic of Serbia into the ЕU is a process that requires, in addition to numerous and comprehensive institutional reforms, the creation and development of stable and sustainable regional relations, especially with the EU member states in its immediate environment. Given that improving regional cooperation is one of the most important criteria for joining the EU, the paper pays special attention to the development of Serbia’s bilateral relations with neighbouring countries, especially Croatia, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania, which are also members of this supranational organisation. Applying the comparative method of analysis, the authors tried to shed light not only on the achieved results but also on the current problems between the neighbouring countries of the Western Balkans and to provide a realistic picture of the possibilities of overcoming them in order to intensify the process of European integration of candidate countries for admission to the EU.

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Strategic forecasting is a relatively new approach in contemporary international relations analysis. It implies the undertaking of various activities aimed at creating scenarios about the possible directions of development of the effects of those foreign-political events that change the existing international system. Making decisions in diplomacy and defence is, therefore, very important. Due to the dynamics of international relations, strategic forecasting is becoming an increasingly important instrument for planning and undertaking defence activities that respond to the changes that have occurred or reduce the effects of those changes. Strategic forecasting has its own methodology, holistic approach, and specific terminology. In order for the results of strategic foresight to fulfil their purpose, the adaptability and flexibility of institutions and decision-makers are required. The EU saw the importance of strategic forecasting, which is why, with the latest strategic document on the planning of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), it established a whole series of auxiliary services and bodies that will deal with it. Using historical, legal, and comparative methods, the author investigates the role of strategic forecasting in the EU and indirectly analyses its importance for the Republic of Serbia.

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Bearing in mind that in the modern world, environmental pollution is increasingly common and that individuals face the concrete harmful effects of various forms of pollution, the application of the principles of international law on environmental protection in the practice of the European Court of Human Rights stands out as an adequate way that fully meets the needs of environmental protection and human rights. The aim of the subject paper is to determine whether the European Court of Human Rights contributed to the understanding of the problems related to the legal nature of the principles it used in its practice and whether the practice of the Court had a special significance for the principles. Through the use of normative, conceptual, comparative, and historical methods, the author contributed to the theoretical understanding of problems related to the legal nature of principles, their use in international and domestic judicial practice, and their progressive development through the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. The author came to the conclusion that the principles applied by the Court can be considered the rules of regional customary international law, whose goal is the protection of human rights and, indirectly, the protection of the environment. Through the analysis of judicial practice, the author also determined certain shortcomings in the application of the principles, which, in her opinion, can be solved so that the contribution of the European Court of Human Rights in clarifying the disputed nature of the principles would be even greater in the function of protecting human rights and the environment.

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Climate changes that have occurred in the past few decades are forcing the EU to implement certain changes in the field of civil protection. The EU implements these changes primarily by transforming parts of the civil protection system that should withstand the duration of a potential emergency situation. A special problem is the increasingly frequent occurrence of emergency situations that one country cannot deal with alone. These are emergency situations that affect several countries at the same time, which always represents a great challenge for the EU. That is why the EU has taken steps to strengthen the individual and collective capacities of its member states. One of the most important tasks of the EU is a constant review of the defined goals related to disaster resilience. With the Commission Recommendation on Union Disaster Resilience Goals on February 8, 2023, the EU revises the current objectives of the civil protection system, paying more attention to the nature of changed circumstances through predictions, preparations, warnings, and insurance, as well as providing adequate responses to accidents.

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In the course of 2022, the EU adopted the “Package of Laws on Digital Services” (Digital Services Act and Digital Market Act) and the proposal of the “European Media Freedom Act” through the adoption of the Regulations. The paper discusses the key features of the new regulatory framework from the point of view of its purpose, content, and potential importance for the Republic of Serbia. The new regulatory framework represents media pluralism, which is recognised in several documents of the Council of Europe and the EU as one of the essential factors for the functioning of a democratic society. The EU member states have the obligation to harmonise their legislation with the adopted regulatory framework in order to guarantee effective media pluralism. So far, binding EU measures have been limited only to the establishment and functioning of the common internal market and have had an indirect impact on media pluralism. The latest regulatory initiatives at the EU level show that its current institutions are determined to take measures for a more decisive protection of media pluralism, passing binding acts for the member states regarding the editorial independence of the media, media ownership, and the protection of competition in the internal media market, which is increasingly digitized. The paper analyses the content of the Regulations and other EU legal acts as well as the theoretical material. In conclusion, the author points to the guidelines given by the new EU media regulation for improving freedom of expression and media pluralism in Serbia, primarily bearing in mind the high risks for media pluralism arising from regulatory deficiencies in the areas of the digital services market and the fight against disinformation.

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The paper analyses the development of the Common European Asylum System within the EU, its weaknesses, and the new measures introduced through the New Migration Pact. A special focus is placed on the migration crisis caused by the Russian military intervention in Ukraine in 2022. The destruction and conflict led to a huge number of refugees, especially women and children, who were forced to leave their homes. The EU responded by launching special protection schemes for Ukrainians and non-Ukrainians who were in the country on the day the conflict broke out. However, solidarity and shared values remain disputed among the EU member states. The legal basis for accepting persons in need of international protection is the Directive on Temporary Protection, adopted in 2001. The paper examines to what extent refugees from Ukraine can count on international protection in accordance with Community law, given the possibility that the military conflict will turn into a long-term crisis. This paper compares the Ukrainian crisis with previous migrant crises and analyses the different ways in which the EU has responded to these crises. In the concluding remarks, the relevance of this issue for the Republic of Serbia is pointed out.

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Although it is well-known that the rights guaranteed by the Constitution can be limited only when this is allowed by law and to the extent provided by the Constitution, without encroaching on their essence or reducing their achieved level, while the law can prescribe the ways of their realisation when this is expressly provided by the Constitution and necessary due to the nature of the law itself, the previous years of living in a pandemic have raised many questions regarding the respect of these generally accepted provisions of the law. Is there always a balance between the possible restriction of rights and the purpose, i.e., are smaller restrictions resorted to if the purpose can be achieved with them, or does it happen that state authorities abuse the powers entrusted to them by the will of the citizens in situations where we are faced with some challenging circumstances that could not be accurately predicted and regulated during legal regulation in different areas? That is a question asked today, it seems, more often than ever before. In this paper, the author will try to answer the previously asked question after analysing the verdicts that the constitutional courts made in certain countries during the COVID- 19 pandemic as a result of various procedures that were initiated. To what extent do the decisions of these courts differ from state to state? What were their decisionmakers primarily guided by, and was the expected constitutional protection provided or was it absent?

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The paper discusses a dual approach to the mediation concept in the Austrian legal system. Traditionally, litigants in Austria are used to seeing third parties, such as judges and arbitrators, with a reasonably high level of satisfaction. In principle, parties to a dispute are free to choose methods of alternative dispute resolution, including mediation. The Austrian legal concept of mediation is based on transformative models of mediation. It focuses on the voluntariness of the parties to resolve their disputes themselves with the help of a neutral and independent third party. To ensure this elementary but loose principle, Austrian legislation established a system of registration. The register with the list of mediators is kept at the Federal Ministry of Justice. The Austrian legal system has introduced a centralised administrative procedure that regulates the prerequisites and effects of registration. The Austrian Civil Mediation Act prescribes the basic professional duties that registered mediators must fulfil. In practice, however, it is possible to conduct mediation without meeting these prescribed standards. Since mediation can be performed by persons without training or experience, it is a “free activity” in contrast to judicial institutional activity.