Soft power and stigma: Serbia's changing image in the eyes of the European Union

Abstract

As Serbia works towards European Union (EU) membership, the country's public diplomacy efforts are increasingly relevant. Through a content analysis of European news articles on the topic of Serbia's accession into the EU, this article finds a mixed degree of success to Serbia's public diplomacy efforts. Overall, Serbia's public diplomacy proved more effective as a tool to influence foreign opinion on its political changes than as a way to promote Serbia as a natural fit with the EU's identity. This article concludes that while Serbia's public diplomacy has been a useful tool in some respects, it has not proven capable of moving the nation towards a more ‘European’ identity in the eyes of EU member states.