Serbia applied to join the European Union (EU) in 2009 and has been a candidate for membership since 2012, along with nine other states.

[7] Obstacles for accession include the requirement to recognize statehood for Kosovo, foreign policy alignment with Russia, democratic backsliding including allegations of fraud in elections in December 2023, and domestic policies such as rule of law and media freedom.

[8][5][9] Negotiations with the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (later the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro) intensified following the overthrow of Slobodan Milošević in 2000, and the EU officially declared the Balkan states potential candidates for membership following the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Thessaloniki on 21 June 2003.

[10] On 7 November 2007, Serbia initiated a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the European Union.

In December 2013, the Council of the European Union approved opening negotiations for Serbia's accession.

Until 2020, Serbia had been receiving €2.9bn of developmental aid from the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance, a funding mechanism for EU candidate countries.

In September 2012, the EU Enlargement Commissioner, Štefan Füle, denied that the European Union would insist on Serbia's recognition of Kosovo before it can join the organisation.

Serbia has become more opposed to the Western NATO bloc and prefer better ties and relationships with, for example, Russia for its shared Eastern Orthodox Christian Slavic traditions and China with its large economy and similar soft alliance with Russia.