Challenges in the fight against corruption in the EU integration process - case study: North Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro

An effective fight against corruption is a condition for the rule of law, building a state with functional institutions and respecting human freedoms and rights. Achieving positive results is a challenge for both developed democracies and countries in transition.
The paper analyzes the normative and institutional frameworks for fighting corruption in three countries from the Western Balkans, North Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, as well as their strategic documents for fighting corruption. Despite the results achieved in the last few decades, the problems with corruption are still complex, and in this direction the focus of this paper is research into the reasons for such a situation as well as the challenges for the future.
In the efforts for faster integration into the EU, the three countries are implementing reforms with the aim of more effectively fighting corruption, but there is one key factor for achieving this goal, and that is the existence of political will to fight corruption. This aspect is particularly emphasized in the paper because without political will it is impossible to achieve visible successes in the fight against corruption. The authors emphasize that the best laws can be written, quality strategic documents can be adopted, but if they are not implemented, it is as if they do not exist.
The paper pays special attention to the transition process in North Macedonia as well as to the implementation of the current National Strategy for the Prevention of Corruption and Conflict of Interest. In addition, the authors present several proposals for changes in the normative and institutional framework of North Macedonia for the fight against corruption.
The methodological approach is a combination of several methods, content analysis, comparative legal research, historical and statistical methods.