The United States sees energy security in the Western Balkans as a national security priority and is stepping up efforts to help the region reduce its dependence on Russian supplies, Joshua Volz, a special envoy for energy integration at the U.S. Department of Energy, told RFE/RL.

In this week's briefing, RFE/RL Europe Editor Rikard Jozwiak is drilling down on two issues: a damning rule-of-law assessment for Serbia and the latest Franco-German EU enlargement proposal.