Put Digital Platform Governance at the Heart of the EU Enlargement Process

As part of the IGNITA initiative, the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), the C.A. “Why Not” and the Kosovo Center for Security Studies (KCSS) organized a conference in Brussels in May 2025 to discuss strengthening cooperation between the European Union and the Western Balkans countries in the areas of digital security and cyber security. The conference was organized with the support of the Open Society Foundations – Western Balkans (OSF-WB) and brought together representatives of the European Parliament, the European Commission, the European External Action Service (EEAS) and other actors in Brussels.

The discussion focused on advancing the structured and gradual integration of the six Western Balkan countries into the EU cybersecurity architecture, with a particular focus on the possibility of granting observer status to the countries of the region in the EU Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA) and the implementation of the Digital Services Act (DSA) in the region.

Maida Ćulahović from the C.A. “Why Not” stressed the need for a coordinated approach to implementing the Digital Services Act across the region, noting that divergent national strategies in this regard could lead to regulatory fragmentation.

Maida Ćulahović

“As an organization whose core mission is to promote accountability and combat disinformation—including by running two fact-checking platforms—we have come to a clear realization: without legally enforceable responsibilities for online platforms, our efforts often feel like putting out fires. Voluntary compliance by private, for-profit tech companies is not something we cannot rely on, as we have witnessed time and time again.What we are suggesting is for Digital Policy to be positioned at the heart of the EU enlargement, treating digital platforms governance not as a secondary concern but as a central pillar of the enlargement process. Why is this crucial? Digital policy today intersects with every major strategic priority: democratic resilience, economic integration, human rights protection, and geopolitical stability.”

KCSS Executive Director Mentor Vrajolli highlighted the opportunity presented by the ongoing review of the European Cybersecurity Act.

“As part of our advocacy work, we organized roundtables last year in Tirana and Berlin, bringing together experts, policymakers, institutional partners, and representatives of the WB6 countries. In both cases, the message was clear: bringing the Western Balkans closer to the EU in cybersecurity is a no-brainer. Everyone agreed—it’s logical, and necessary, for both sides, EU and WB6. Today, we are here to reaffirm that message—at a moment of strategic opportunity. The EU Cybersecurity Act is currently under revision, and this provides a concrete window to make one essential change: enable observer status in ENISA for candidate and potential candidate countries, provided they meet necessary conditions.”

MEP Davor Ivo Stier put the issue in the broader context of the enlargement process. Michael Docherty from the European Commission’s DG ENER highlighted the strategic role of digital investments within the EU’s Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. Haris Avdić Pejičić from the EEAS spoke about addressing hybrid threats through closer political and institutional cooperation.

KCSS and C.A. “Why not” presented a set of recommendations, developed within the framework of the IGNITA initiative, including a roadmap for gradually obtaining observer status in ENISA, support for harmonized DSA alignment across WB6, and further investment in institutional capacity. The recommendations reflect continuous efforts to move from project-based cooperation towards long-term policy integration.

The roundtable was concluded by the presentation of OSF-WB Deputy Director Miodrag Milosavljević, who noted that although the Western Balkans are already digitally connected to the EU, institutional frameworks remain unaligned.

“The question is not whether we are linked, but whether we are prepared to manage those connections securely,” he said.