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Journal articles on the topic 'Western balkans'
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1
Razsa, Maple, and Nicole Lindstrom. "Balkan Is Beautiful: Balkanism in the Political Discourse of Tudman’s Croatia." East European Politics and Societies: and Cultures 18, no. 4 (November 2004): 628–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0888325404266939.
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This article examines the role of Balkanist discourse in Tudman’s Croatia. Todorova’s concept of Balkanism provides a useful theoretical framework through which to explore the deployment of Balkanist stereotypes against Croatia by Western leaders. Balkanism also illuminates the ways in which Croatians used many of these same Balkan stereotypes to differentiate themselves from their neighbors to the south and east. Through an examination of Croatian newspaper columns, government documents and speeches, and political cartoons from the 1990s, this article analyzes how Balkanist interpretations and representations played an integral role in the construction of Croatian national identity and the mobilization of Croatians around a variety of political agendas. The objective of this article is not, however, simply to document the deployment of Balkanist stereotypes against or within Croatia. The second component of the article suggests ways in which Croatia’s liminal position between “Europe” and the “Balkans” might serve as an ideal standpoint from which one might challenge the binary oppositions of Balkanism and begin to reimagine the Balkans, redirecting these categories as a site of political engagement and critique.
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Dumnić Vilotijević, Marija. "The Balkans of the Balkans: The Meaning of Autobalkanism in Regional Popular Music." Arts 9, no. 2 (June 16, 2020): 70. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/arts9020070.
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In this article, I discuss the use of the term “Balkan” in the regional popular music. In this context, Balkan popular music is contemporary popular folk music produced in the countries of the Balkans and intended for the Balkan markets (specifically, the people in the Western Balkans and diaspora communities). After the global success of “Balkan music” in the world music scene, this term influenced the cultures in the Balkans itself; however, interestingly, in the Balkans themselves “Balkan music” does not only refer to the musical characteristics of this genre—namely, it can also be applied music that derives from the genre of the “newly-composed folk music”, which is well known in the Western Balkans. The most important legacy of “Balkan” world music is the discourse on Balkan stereotypes, hence this article will reveal new aspects of autobalkanism in music. This research starts from several questions: where is “the Balkans” which is mentioned in these songs actually situated; what is the meaning of the term “Balkan” used for the audience from the Balkans; and, what are musical characteristics of the genre called trepfolk? Special focus will be on the post-Yugoslav market in the twenty-first century, with particular examples in Serbian language (as well as Bosnian and Croatian).
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Qorraj, Gazmend. "Towards European Union or Regional Economic Area: Western Balkans at Crossroads." Naše gospodarstvo/Our economy 64, no. 1 (March 1, 2018): 11–17. http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/ngoe-2018-0002.
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Abstract The aim of the paper is to reflect upon the dilemma or whether the EU will continue the integration process in the Western Balkans or backlash on regional cooperation instruments and initiatives within the framework of the Western Balkans. The Regional Economic Area (REA) is analyzed as the more recent policy of the European Union for the remaining Balkan countries. It is crucial to analyze the idea behind REA, starting from two main assumptions: first, the creation of REA stemmed from EU internal challenges; and second, REA came up as a creative EU approach in efforts to find a specific model for reforms in the Western Balkans in the frame of regional institutions. The paper also discusses regional trade and specifically the role of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) in coordinating these initiatives in the Western Balkans. Taking into consideration the EU current challenges as well as difficulties of the Western Balkan countries to overcome the political and economic problems, then regional cooperation could appear as an alternative to the EU integration process for the Western Balkans. The main conclusion of this paper is that the Western Balkans needs the EU’s direct support, in particular, since RCC and other regional instruments cannot enforce, support and monitor the initiatives and reforms in the region.
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Hoxhaj, Andi. "The EU Common Regional Market Proposals for the Western Balkans." Legal Issues of Economic Integration 49, Issue 3 (July 1, 2022): 311–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.54648/leie2022015.
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The EU and the Western Balkans in 2020 launched a regional economic integration initiative entitled ‘The Western Balkans Common Regional Market’, aimed at economically integrating the Western Balkans based on the EU Single Market rules by 2025. The economic integration initiative has been met with challenges, and this contribution provides an assessment of EU-led initiatives to promote economic integration within the Western Balkans between 2014 and 2021, analysing some of the challenges to ensuring that the Western Balkans Common Regional Market is operational by 2025. The contribution conceptualises the mode of governance approach used by the EU in engaging with the Western Balkans since 2014 and suggests that it is largely based on soft law. The contribution finds that the action plan for establishing a regional common market is flawed, as it has not taken on board the high level of corruption and the lack of rule of law in the Western Balkans. The contribution provides new insights into the nature of corruption taking place in the Western Balkans and argues that corruption and the lack of the rule of law could be a major barrier for the proper function of the regional common market. Western Balkans, Berlin Process, Common Market, Open Balkan, Corruption, Rule of Law, Economic Integration, European Neighbourhood and Enlargement Policy
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Djokic, Aleksandar. "The Perspectives of Russia’s Soft Power in the Western Balkans Region." RUDN Journal of Political Science 22, no. 2 (December 15, 2020): 231–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.22363/2313-1438-2020-22-2-231-244.
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The article analyzes the perspectives of Russia’s soft power in the Balkans. The Russian Federation has longstanding historical, political, cultural and economic ties to the Balkan region. Therefore, being free of a one-sided ideological approach that hampered the usage of soft power by the USSR during the Cold War era, Russia stands at the crossroads as to how best to use it’s great potential for peaceful diplomacy and influence in the Western Balkans. The article will provide an analysis of the achievements of the Russian Federation in regards to extending it’s influence in the Western Balkans, but also the downsides of it’s foreign policy. The analysis will encompass several Western Balkan states and their ties to Russia in terms of soft power: Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The article raises the question: whether Russia can withstand the struggle for influence over the Balkans with it’s greatest rivals in the region - the United States and the EU? The author concludes that it depends largely on the various approaches and methods used by Russian diplomacy and the level of funding of various projects that can be used to extend Russia’s cultural influence in the Balkan peninsula.
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Banach, Wawrzyniec. "Unia Europejska wobec Bałkanów Zachodnich w kontekście kryzysu migracyjnego w latach 2015‑2019." Politeja 17, no. 3(66) (June 25, 2020): 157–69. http://dx.doi.org/10.12797/politeja.17.2020.66.11.
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European Union towards Western Balkans in the Context of Migration Crisis 2015‑2019
The aim of the article is to analyse the actions taken by the European Union towards the Western Balkans in the context of the migration crisis. The study assumes that the migration crisis was an important factor accelerating the accession process of the Western Balkan countries to the European Union. In order to fulfil the research goal, an analysis of sources (European Union documents) was conducted. The paper uses elements of the theory of the regional security complex as a theoretical framework. Firstly, the activities of the European Union before the migration crisis are discussed. Next, the paper focuses on presenting the course of the crisis on the Western Balkan route. The further part of the study discusses the actions taken by the EU towards the countries of the Western Balkans in response to the migration crisis.
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Grcic, Mirko. "Balkans as the cultural subcontinent of Europe." Glasnik Srpskog geografskog drustva 85, no. 1 (2005): 209–18. http://dx.doi.org/10.2298/gsgd0501209g.
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New world order and rearrangement of Europe transform the position of Balkan region -instead as the "crossroad" between East and West, it is more often included into the area of Western influence. In European relations developed "core" is gradually spreading toward "periphery" removing the traditional Balkan culture. The europeisation of Balkans and spreading of Western European civilization's circle gives the arguments that the term Balkans should be replaced with the term Southeastern Europe. The europeisation or balkanization is not geopolitical but civilization choice in front of all Balkan nations.
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Echimovich, Mariana, Vitaliy Alekseevich Danilov, Zarina Fazlitdinovna Mardonova, and Maxim Kirillovich Karpukhin. "Evolution of foreign policy priorities of the Western Balkan countries in the context of their European and Euro-Atlantic." Конфликтология / nota bene, no. 3 (March 2021): 143–57. http://dx.doi.org/10.7256/2454-0617.2021.3.37080.
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This article traces the evolution of foreign policy priorities of the Western Balkan countries in the context of their European and Euro-Atlantic integration over the period from the mid-1990s to 2020. The key goal lies in the analysis of formation and development of the European and Euro-Atlantic vectors in foreign policy of the Western Balkans. The relevance of the selected topic is defined by fact that all Western Balkan countries are somehow involved in the European and Euro-Atlantic integration processes, which prompts transformations in their home and foreign policy. In post-Cold War era, the Western Balkans depart from their foreign policy course, which they have followed since the end of the World War II. The conflicts that were related to dissolution of Yugoslavia underline the expansion of influence of the North Atlantic Alliance as the major “peacekeeper”, and the European Union, which took on the role of post-conflict settlement. In the under their influence. Tracing the evolution of foreign policy priorities of the Western Balkans within the framework of their European and Euro-Atlantic integration defines the scientific novelty of this research. The acquired conclusions can be implemented in theoretical and practical activity. The article explores the regional initiatives of NATO and EU, which were aimed at stabilization of the Western Balkan region through transformation of state and social institutions, development of interstate cooperation, and involvement in regional integration processes. For determination of the role of the European Union and NATO in foreign policy of the Western Balkans, the author analyzed the doctrinal documents of the Western Balkan countries, which highlighted the priority of European and Euro-Atlantic vector.
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Echimovich, Mariana, Vitaliy Alekseevich Danilov, Zarina Fazlitdinovna Mardonova, and Maxim Kirillovich Karpukhin. "Evolution of foreign policy priorities of the Western Balkan countries in the context of their European and Euro-Atlantic." Конфликтология / nota bene, no. 4 (April 2021): 56–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.7256/2454-0617.2021.4.37080.
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This article traces the evolution of foreign policy priorities of the Western Balkan countries in the context of their European and Euro-Atlantic integration over the period from the mid-1990s to 2020. The key goal lies in the analysis of formation and development of the European and Euro-Atlantic vectors in foreign policy of the Western Balkans. The relevance of the selected topic is defined by fact that all Western Balkan countries are somehow involved in the European and Euro-Atlantic integration processes, which prompts transformations in their home and foreign policy. In post-Cold War era, the Western Balkans depart from their foreign policy course, which they have followed since the end of the World War II. The conflicts that were related to dissolution of Yugoslavia underline the expansion of influence of the North Atlantic Alliance as the major “peacekeeper”, and the European Union, which took on the role of post-conflict settlement. In the under their influence. Tracing the evolution of foreign policy priorities of the Western Balkans within the framework of their European and Euro-Atlantic integration defines the scientific novelty of this research. The acquired conclusions can be implemented in theoretical and practical activity. The article explores the regional initiatives of NATO and EU, which were aimed at stabilization of the Western Balkan region through transformation of state and social institutions, development of interstate cooperation, and involvement in regional integration processes. For determination of the role of the European Union and NATO in foreign policy of the Western Balkans, the author analyzed the doctrinal documents of the Western Balkan countries, which highlighted the priority of European and Euro-Atlantic vector.
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Glišić, Iva, and Tijana Vujošević. "Zenitism and orientalism." Zbornik Akademije umetnosti, no. 9 (2021): 29–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.5937/zbaku2109029g.
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Reflecting on the centenary of the birth of Zenitism, this essay examines how the movement engaged with stereotypes about the Slavic Orient, and in particular the discourse on Balkanism. The European orientalist reading of the Balkans became especially profound in years surrounding the World War I. Seeking to invert derogatory characterisations of the Balkan Peninsula, Zenitists would embark on a mission to "Balkanise Europe" by presenting the artist from the East as a rejuvenating, revolutionary force emerging from a cultural tabula rasa. Zenitism sought to destabilise the dominant Orient-Occident discourse by establishing parallels between existing negative stereotypes of the Balkans and the aesthetic tropes of the European avantgarde. Specifically, Zenitists established the Balkan "Barbarogenius" as the archetypal modernist primitive - precisely the figure conjured by the European intelligentsia as the saviour for its listless modern condition. In addition, the Zenitist movement established an analogy between the hallmark fragmentation of the Balkans and the cultural cacophony of the avant-garde. The political and aesthetic strategies of the movement, the authors assert, bear a striking similarity with those of the Black Atlantic, and its 'in-betweenness'-its ambition to straddle two opposing worlds. Organised around its eponymous journal Zenit, which was conceptualised as "the first Balkan journal in Europe and the first European journal in the Balkans," Zenitism employed European avant-garde aesthetic strategies while simultaneously rejecting European claims to cultural supremacy. For Yugoslav, Soviet, and Western European audiences, the journal had two parallel goals: the creative "Balkanisation" of Europe, and a commitment to dismantling Yugoslav "nesting orientalisms" by fighting against the reproduction of negative stereotypes among the region's own inhabitants. Against a backdrop of European crisis and a global demand for a renewed emancipatory struggle, the ambition of Zenitism holds strong appeal today.
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Milanovic, Biljana. "Balkans as a cultural symbol in the Serbian music of the first half of the twentieth century." Muzikologija, no. 8 (2008): 17–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.2298/muz0808017m.
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Focus on the internalization of Western images in the Balkans has special significance in researching Serbian art. The functioning of Balkanism as it overlapped and intersected with Orientalism is indicated in the text by an examination of the cases of Petar Konjovic, Miloje Milojevic and Josip Slavenski, the three significant composers working in Serbia during the first half of the twentieth century. Their modernistic projects present different metaphors of the Balkans. Nevertheless each of them is marked by desire to change the Balkan image into a 'positive' one and thus stands as a special voice for Serbian and regional placing in European competition for musical spaces.
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Bellaqa, Bashkim, Qazim Tmava, and Arif Krasniqi. "Comparison of the labor market between the countries of the Western Balkans." Corporate Governance and Organizational Behavior Review 5, no. 2, special issue (2021): 135–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.22495/cgobrv5i2sip2.
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The improvement of the labor market, the management, the expansion of foreign direct investment, etc., all play a key role in the economic development of the Western Balkans. The main purpose of this study is to analyze and compare trends in employment, unemployment, gross domestic product (GDP), foreign direct investment (FDI), labor market management and to study the effects of foreign direct investment on employment in the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia) between 2015 and 2019. However, evidence for FDI’s impact is mixed (Navaretti & Venables, 2004). In terms of methodology, comparative and empirical analyses of the strength of the correlation between the dependent variable of employment and the independent variable of FDI for the countries of the Western Balkans have been conducted. Based on analyses, the employment rate in the six Western Balkan countries in 2019 has improved when compared to 2018, except in Montenegro, where it has declined. This study will contribute to enhance understanding of the labor market and the impact of FDI on employment in the Western Balkan countries
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Bitkova, Tatiana. "ROMANIA AND THE BALKANS: POLITICAL, HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL ASPECTS." Urgent Problems of Europe, no. 2 (2021): 233–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.31249/ape/2021.02.11.
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The article analyzes some aspects of Romania’s foreign policy in the Balkan region. It is noted that the same fact that country belongs to the Balkans causes ambiguous interpretations on the part of Romanian politicians and experts, many of whom believe that Romania cannot be attributed to this region either geographically or politically. At the same time, culturally and historically, according to a certain part of historians and sociologists, Romania nevertheless carries the features of the so-called «Balkanism», due to the common Ottoman past with the Balkan Peninsula. These features are also relevant for the current socio-political situation, which is shown in the article with specific examples. In addition, criticism of the very term «Balkanism» from the side of Romanian analysts is presented. The author also examines Romania’s relations with the countries of the Western Balkans, primarily with Serbia. The points of contact of the positions of these countries are noted, which are largely due to the desire of Serbia to resolve the Kosovo problem in its favor, relying on the support of Romania - one of the five EU countries that did not recognize the independence of Kosovo. Romania, using this situation, is trying to strengthen its position, seeking regional leadership. The author comes to the conclusion that, although the Western Balkan countries directly or indirectly aspire to Euro-Atlantic structures, some of them (primarily Serbia) maintain and develop friendly relations with Russia, which complicates their interaction with Romania, orthodoxly adhering to the NATO and European Union policies and having a very difficult relationship with Russia.
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Mojsovska, Silvana. "The Western Balkans on its path to the European Union." Rocznik Instytutu Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej 17, no. 4 (December 2019): 9–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.36874/riesw.2019.4.1.
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EU membership has been a compelling goal for the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Hercegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia), related to the bloc’s stability, economic prosperity and higher standard of living. Each of these countries pursues its own process of EU accession while being also a part of the regional initiatives under the auspices of the EU. This paper provides an overview of the EU accession process of the Western Balkan countries, focusing on their individual achievements and challenges, as well as common features and problems. Also, the content andprospects of regional integration of the Western Balkans through the Regional Economic Area (REA) programme, along with the role of the EU in supporting the regional perspective are discussed. The parallel Western Balkans engagement in both processes supports arguments for the prioritisation of the individual countries’ accession to the EU over Western Balkans regional integration, distinguishing also the challenges of both processes. The methodology for the elaboration of this paper includes methods of analysis and synthesis, based on extensive desk research of available materials.
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Bistrina, Mariya, and Mohd Aljarwan. "Clash of geopolitical interests of world leaders in Western Balkans. Hybrid version of integration." OOO "Zhurnal "Voprosy Istorii" 2021, no. 02 (February 1, 2021): 104–13. http://dx.doi.org/10.31166/voprosyistorii202102statyi12.
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The article is devoted to the geopolitical situation in the Balkans and the historical development of integration processes of Western Balkan countries with the world leaders — EU, USA, Russia, China. The authors consider the problem in international and regional contexts. Particular attention is paid to the prospects for the development of a hybrid version of integration in the Balkans.
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Djukanovic, Dragan, and Branislav Djordjevic. "“Mini Schengen” - concept, implementation and controversies." Medjunarodni problemi 72, no. 3 (2020): 595–618. http://dx.doi.org/10.2298/medjp2003595d.
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The concept of the Regional Economic Area was developed gradually within the framework of the Berlin Process, which began its operations in 2014. A particular momentum for this initiative was given at the Berlin Process Summit, held in Trieste in July 2017, when the Consolidated Multi-Annual Action Plan for the Regional Economic Area in the Western Balkans Six was adopted. The main objective of the REA was related to trade, investment, mobility, and digital integration throughout the Western Balkans region. At the summit of Western Balkans leaders, chaired by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron, in late April 2019, the idea of a full revival of the Regional Economic Area was again encouraged. Despite some opposition and disagreement on the part of some Western Balkan leaders for fear that the REA would compensate for the Western Balkan countries' membership in the European Union, it came to its empowering through the format of the tripartite meetings of leaders of Serbia, North Macedonia and Albania - ?Mini Schengen?. However, these meetings explicitly highlighted the link between ?Mini Schengen?, the REA and the wider context of European integration, but also that this initiative actually aimed to secure "four EU freedoms" throughout the Western Balkans region. This primarily refers to the freedom of movement of persons with a valid ID, as well as the possibility of employment, residence, and living in these countries. Moreover, mutual recognition of all diplomas and qualifications between the three countries is envisaged. It is particularly important to ensure the full inclusiveness of ?Mini Schengen? in the future, through the participation of all entities in the Western Balkans, including Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo. It is equally significant that the leaders of the Western Balkan countries express solidarity regarding the continuation of European integration, as it was done at the meetings held in Novi Sad (10 October 2019), Ohrid (10 November 2019) and Tirana (21 December 2019) through support for Albania and North Macedonia to begin pre-accession negotiations with the EU. Also, ?Mini Schengen?, as an initiative for cooperation predominantly related to the economic segment, involves deepening of cooperation in both security and civilian emergencies, which is a relevant response to the current challenges in this part of Europe.
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Jezernik, Božidar. "Western perceptions of Turkish towns in the Balkans." Urban History 25, no. 2 (August 1998): 211–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s096392680000081x.
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ABSTRACTThe article was conceived as a guided tour through the Balkan Peninsula including descriptions of two selected towns from Hungary, Croatia, Rumania, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. It gives a summary of Western perceptions of the Balkan towns as noted by Western Europeans who visited the area in different periods from the seventeenth century onwards. The civilization they found and described there was a part of an entity encompassing the material and spiritual culture of urban life in the Near East. During the nineteenth century the Balkans underwent major political changes and contemporary travellers' reports were rich with observations about the process of ‘Europeanization’ of the Balkan towns. During the process which meant nationalism and fragmentation in what had been a fairly uniform culture area, paradoxically, ‘Balkanization’ was the final result.
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Maksakova, Maria A. "EUROPEAN PROSPECTS FOR BALKANS’ INTEGRATION." EKONOMIKA I UPRAVLENIE: PROBLEMY, RESHENIYA 1, no. 11 (2021): 180–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.36871/ek.up.p.r.2021.11.01.021.
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The article examines current stage of the Western Balkans’ integration into Europe and prospects for joining the European Union. Based on the analysis of the European Commission reports on the integration progress of the countries, the fulfillment of the Copenhagen criteria, the requirements of the nego-tiation dossier articles and the conditions of the Stabilization and Association Process (SAP), the author as-sesses the strengths and weaknesses of the Balkan states to bring internal norms and rules in line with Eu-ropean requirements. Particular attention is paid to new approaches to candidate countries and new EU strat-egy in the Western Balkans.
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Pennanen, Risto. "Lost in scales: Balkan folk music research and the ottoman legacy." Muzikologija, no. 8 (2008): 127–47. http://dx.doi.org/10.2298/muz0808127p.
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Balkan folk music researchers have articulated various views on what they have considered Oriental or Turkish musical legacy. The discourses the article analyses are nationalism, Orientalism, Occidentalism and Balkanism. Scholars have handled the awkward Ottoman issue in several manners: They have represented 'Oriental' musical characteristics as domestic, claimed that Ottoman Turks merely imitated Arab and Persian culture, and viewed Indian classical raga scales as sources for Oriental scales in the Balkans. In addition, some scholars have viewed the 'Oriental' characteristics as stemming from ancient Greece. The treatment of the Seg?h family of Ottoman makams in theories and analyses reveals several features of folk music research in the Balkans, the most important of which are the use of Western concepts and the exclusive dependence on printed sources. The strategies for handling the Orient within have meandered between Occidentalism and Orientalism, creating an ambiguity which is called Balkanism.
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Mahmutefendic, Tahir. "The Eu Enlargement. How to be Like the Irish and not the Greek?" ECONOMICS 7, no. 2 (December 1, 2019): 49–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/eoik-2019-0021.
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Abstract Apart from the former EFTA members (Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) and a few former republics of the Soviet Union (Bjelorussia, Moldova and Ukraina) the countries of the Western Balkans are the only European states outside of the European Union. They are very keen to join the Union. The Balkans have always been the poorest part of Europe. The appeal of the wealthy European Union is apparent. Access to the largest market in the world, investment, modern technologies and generous regional funds give a hope that by joining the EU the Western Balkans countries will join the rich club. At the moment performance of the Western Balkan countries does not guarantee that they will become rich by joining the European Union. Their current production and trade structure makes it likely that the Western Balkan countries will be locked in inter-industry trade in which they will export products of low and medium technological and developmental level and import products of high technological and developmental level. This might lead to divergence rather than convergence between them and the European Union. In other to overcome this problem the Western Balkan countries need to conduct radical reforms in the public sector, fiscal policy, industrial trade and investment policy. They also need to tackle corruption, simplify administrative procedure, strenghten property rights and the lawful state. All this with the aim to change economic structure and shift from achievements of the second and third to fourth technological revolution. Only if these reforms are successfuly implemented the Western Balkan countries can hope to avoid the Greek scenario and possibly experience the Irish scenario.
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Karlsrud, John, and Marko Milošević. "Mapping western Balkans civilian capacities for peace operations." Journal of Regional Security 9, no. 2 (2014): 79–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.11643/issn.2217-995x142ppk41.
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Over the past several years the United Nations has increasingly emphasized the role that civilian capacities can play in post-conflict peacebuilding and called for member states to provide expertise. This special issue of the Journal of Regional Security will explore the civilian capacities of the Western Balkans countries and whether there is political will to respond to the call to deploy civilian capacities to UN peace operations and other international organizations. Looking at how Western Balkan countries train, roster and deploy civilian capacities, it will also explore whether increased cooperation in this area could be considered as a security community practice, nurturing bilateral relations and building cooperation in the Western Balkan region. The article finds that there is still a great gap between the expressed policy intent of providing civilian capacities to peace support operations, and putting it into practice. There is also lack of a strategic consideration of how the training and deployment of civilian capacities to peace operations could build legitimacy in international organizations and enhance regional cooperation among the states in the Western Balkans. The article recommends the initiation of a regional dialogue on training and rostering of civilian capacities, realizing synergies and furthering regional cooperation.
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Latinovic, Milica, Vesna Bogojevic Arsic, and Milica Bulajic. "Volatility spillover effect in Western Balkans." Acta Oeconomica 68, no. 1 (March 2018): 79–100. http://dx.doi.org/10.1556/032.2018.68.1.4.
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This article examines volatility spillover among Western Balkan’s stock markets and selected developed markets. If there is an evidence of weak linkage between various markets, then there are potential benefits that could arise from international diversification. However, if we analyse the relationship between two markets that are different in terms of their economic development, and if there is a strong connection between them, market shocks from the developed markets can have an impact on the frontier/emerging markets. Market integration can be indicated with returns linkage and transmission of shocks and volatility between markets. Hence, this can have implications for investment strategies. It is found that there is statistically significant regional spillover between countries of the Western Balkan region. Also, there is global spillover between developed markets and this region as well. Furthermore, there is evidence that Western Balkan’s markets are late in response to important market events, and that can be used when formulating investment strategy.
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Cufurovic, Mirela. "Fully Known Yet Wholly Unknowable." Australian Journal of Islamic Studies 2, no. 1 (April 9, 2017): 39–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.55831/ajis.v2i1.31.
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The Balkan region has left scholars perplexed over its origin and definition, to which they have provided different answers. This challenge stems from the region’s long history; a history where civilisations met, collided, and even merged leading to a dynamic, multilayered region. However, one civilisation stuck with the Balkans centuries after its demise – the Ottoman Empire. This Ottoman legacy marked the Balkans as “the ‘other’ within” Europe at the turn of the nineteenth century when scholars and travel writers began to attach political connotations to the name. Being referred to as ‘Turkey-inEurope,’ the identity of the Balkans became premised on the dichotomy of East versus West, in which the Balkans represented the East – the Orient – purely because of its Ottoman history. It is for this reason that the Balkans, more than any other geographical appellation, conjure up pejorative connotations. So much so, that many tend to either avoid the term altogether – including the Balkan nation-states – or use an ostensibly neutral term like ‘South-east Europe’ to refer to the region. And so, the question remains: who are the Balkans?
This paper examines the ground between historical reality and Western imagination regarding the Balkans by focusing on Balkan identity as conflicted between East and West, and explores the extent to which Balkan scholarship has ‘Orientalised’ the region, whereupon the Balkan nation-states began to disassociate themselves from the Balkan label to appear more ‘European.’ The paper will argue it is because of this complexity – the divide between East and West – that the Balkan region is, paradoxically, fully known yet wholly unknowable: known to Europe, yet distant from it due to its Oriental past and tendencies.
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Ceko, Enriko. "Some Issues On Relations Between Quality Management / Iso Standards Application And Doing Business Climate. (A Comparative Analysis Of Balkans With Western European Countries)." European Scientific Journal, ESJ 12, no. 7 (March 30, 2016): 124. http://dx.doi.org/10.19044/esj.2016.v12n7p124.
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The purpose of research: Determination of relations between quality management and doing business and giving some thoughts to improve the situation regarding the quality institutions and quality infrastructure parallel with doing business climate. Methods: Collection of information, data and facts from primary sources, comparing the information, data and facts gathered from primary sources, conducting relevant analysis and make recommendations on this issue. Results: Balkan countries recently have joined the international community of ISO standards as well as being part of World Bank Reports on Doing Business. These those countries for years have had multiple problems regarding quality’s institutions, quality infrastructure and doing business, problems that affect the development and performance of businesses, development and economic growth, sustainable development and improving the quality of life of citizens under the framework of the Balkan's integration into the Europe and beyond. Outcome: Improving quality’s institutions, quality infrastructure and doing business climate in Balkans will have a positive impact on increasing economic growth and improving the quality of life of citizens within the Balkan’s integration into the Europe and wider.
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Kaloeva, E. B. "Power and civil society in the Western Balkans, their role in foreign policy through the eyes of balkan and foreign researchers." Urgent Problems of Europe, no. 2 (2022): 68–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.31249/ape/2022.02.04.
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The article attempts to show the role of official authorities and civil society on the thorny path that the countries of the Western Balkans have to overcome towards mutual undestanding. Unfortunately, some tensions still persist in relations between the countries of the region, and from time to time some hotheads propose new projects for revising borders, which can lead to the resumption of armed conflicts. Such a development can be ruled out not only by the actions of sober-minded politicians, but also by civil society, which played an important role in restoring peaceful order of life after the end of the bloody Balkan conflict of the 1990 s. After all, the main cause of conflicts in the Balkans lies not in the desire to protect ethnic, cultural and religious differences between the Balkan peoples, but in the way their political and cultural elites understand national identity and use it to achieve their political goals. The article also analyzes the activities of some non-governmental organizations that emerged in the Western Balkans in the early 2000 s and still enjoying international prestige and continue their work, despite the not entirely favorable situation in the position of civil society in those countries where trends of authoritarianism and national populism are strong. Particular attention is paid to the issue of geopolitics in the Western Balkans during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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M. Rikalović, Gojko, Dejan S. Molnar, and Sonja N. Josipović. "THE OPEN BALKAN AS A DEVELOPMENT DETERMINANT OF THE WESTERN BALKAN COUNTRIES." Acta Economica 20, no. 36 (June 26, 2022): 31–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.7251/ace2236031r.
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The paper starts from the concept of the Open Balkan as a community of countries in the Western Balkans, aimed at strengthening their economic cooperation and development for faster integration in the European Union. Significant attention is paid to the analysis of the interdependence of (in)stability of the state and the economic development of small countries. The position of the Open Balkan and its members is also analysed on the basis of the selected global composite indices. An important subject of the analysis is also the condition of institutional capacities of the members of the Open Balkan and their institutional cooperation from the perspective of faster progress towards the European integration. Two main hypotheses have been tested in the paper: (H1) CEEs countries are not a homogeneous group of countries; and (H2) The Western Balkans is a relatively homogeneous regional integration. To test the convergence hypothesis between 16 Central and Eastern European countries (CEEs), annual data from World Bank’s database on the value of real gross domestic product per capita (in constant dollars 2017, PPP) in the period 2000-2026 were used (projected values for the period until 2026). We employed the method developed by Phillips & Sul (2007) that allows identification of clusters of convergence on the basis of an algorithm that is data-driven and thereby avoids a priori classification of the data into subgroups. Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that Serbia is the “locomotive” of the Western Balkans and that all countries in this area should join the regional initiative for cooperation, the Open Balkan.
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Koprivica, Caslav. "The Balkans as a European inner otherness." Zbornik Matice srpske za drustvene nauke, no. 143 (2013): 221–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.2298/zmsdn1343221k.
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In this paper the author attempts to re-examine the importance of the Balkans in the imagery of (Western) Europe. Three points are highlighted: the necessity of mediation of Europe?s identity through the Otherness, peculiarities of Europe?s perception of the Balkans, and influence of the construction of this allegedly unitary, external identity of the Balkans on self-perception of peoples from the Peninsula. An effort is made to show how the internal complexity of the European identity directly and inevitably affected different, not only Balkan, cultural Othernesses and how it is peculiar for the Balkans not to be recognized by the West as sufficiently different Otherness.
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Kozarević, Emira, Nedžad Polić, and Amela Perić. "Financial system development progress in Western Balkans." Banks and Bank Systems 12, no. 2 (June 23, 2017): 7–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/bbs.12(2).2017.01.
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Financial system supports economic growth, while its regulatory framework provides stability for investors. Develo-ping countries with bank-oriented financial systems are not attractive to investors, so prolonged status quo leads to economic deterioration. This is particularly the case with some of the most underdeveloped areas in Europe: Western Balkans. It is essential the developing countries in this region consider steps towards financial liberalization, which will help open the borders for capital flows and attract new investments. The main goal of this paper is to review and present the available information related to the banking system development in Western Balkans in terms of ownership structure, capital adequacy, loan and asset performance, return on investment and liquidity. These indicators should provide a clearer picture of the current financial systems in Western Balkans economies and their development progress – useful for comparison with other developing regions and financial transformation and liberalization efforts.
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Elezi, Mehmet. "The Western Balkans Between Statehood and Integration." Connections: The Quarterly Journal 04, no. 2 (2005): 5–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.11610/connections.04.2.02.
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Djukanovic, Dragan, and Marko Dasic. "Modeling regional cooperation in the Balkans after 1999: European experiences and their application." Medjunarodni problemi 73, no. 4 (2021): 617–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.2298/medjp2104617d.
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In this paper, the authors comparatively analyze the development of regional cooperation in Europe after the Second World War and in the Western Balkans since 1999. They compare and contrast regional cooperation in the Western Balkans (with a particular focus on the period after 2006, when the Stability Pact for Southeastern Europe was transformed into the Regional Cooperation Council, and after 2014, when the Berlin Process was launched) with similar forms of cooperation in Europe, such as the Nordic Council of Ministers, the Visegrad Group, and the Benelux. Therefore, the authors approach a comparative analysis of the composition of these regional forums and their areas of cooperation with the Regional Cooperation Council, the Southeast European Cooperation Process, and the Berlin Process. In this regard, the authors state that there are more than obvious similarities between regional cooperation in the Western Balkans, primarily with the Visegrad Group, and to a significant extent with the Benelux. Regional cooperation on the Balkan Peninsula and between the Nordic countries is similar to a lesser extent, owing to the absence of the formation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Western Balkans, which was overlooked in 2013. The authors conclude that there are numerous obstacles to establishin g more intensive and deeper regional cooperation in the Western Balkans, the most significant of which are the lack of a multilaterally accepted regional identity, the different interests of regional leaders regarding its "originality", the conflicted views of dominant opinions, and the predominant influences of various Western actors.
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Gajin, Dragan. "Competition Law in Western Balkans: Developments in 2018." Yearbook of Antitrust and Regulatory Studies 12, no. 19 (2019): 199–213. http://dx.doi.org/10.7172/1689-9024.yars.2019.12.19.9.
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In 2018, the competition authorities in the Western Balkans (Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and North Macedonia) have continued with their enforcement activities. The level of their activity varies from year to year, but the trend has continued where the Serbian competition authority is the most active one in the region. Generally, the focus of the enforcement activities of the Balkan competition authorities is on merger control, an exception being Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the emphasis is on antitrust enforcement.
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Shcherbak, Igor. "The Western Balkans in EU’s Strategy." Scientific and Analytical Herald of IE RAS 21, no. 3 (June 30, 2021): 41–47. http://dx.doi.org/10.15211/vestnikieran320214147.
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The article is devoted to the problems connected with the EU enlargement to the Western Balkans. The author pays special attention to the factors explaining recent increased attention of the EU to finding solution to the enlargement .The article contains analyses of «the frozen conflicts» in the region which continue to influence the regional stability and make the task of accelerating the EU’s enlargement to the Western Balkans as a priority one in the context of the EU’s strategic autonomy. New EU’s initiatives aimed at arranging strategic debates on EU enlargement to the Western Balkans have been described. The article contains analyses of the so-called frozen conflicts in the Western Balkans which continue to exert influence on regional stability and on the process of association of the Western Balkans with the EU. The important role of the EUthe Western Balkans' summits in elaboration of common approaches of the EU’s member-states to the problem of enlargement has been noted. The article defines a possible perspective of the EU’s enlargement towards the Western Balkans. The author considers that the EU’s enlargement towards the Western Balkans is becoming an important task for the EU in the context of realization of its strategic autonomy and projection of its influence on the given region.
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Čaršimamović Vukotić, Naida, Irena Jankulov Suljagić, and Irina Smirnov. "Post-Crisis Potential Output in the Western Balkans." South East European Journal of Economics and Business 8, no. 1 (March 1, 2013): 23–33. http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/jeb-2013-0002.
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Abstract Spurred by the recent global economic crisis, there has been a resurgence of research on output gaps. As the crisis caused a decline in potential GDP due to a strong contraction in demand, it is expected that the recovery of potential output will be especially difficult in demand-driven small open economies, such as the Western Balkan countries, where recovery will strongly depend on global international trade recovery. The purpose of this research is to calculate and compare pre and post-crisis potential GDPs and GDP gaps for the Western Balkan countries. The symmetric filter method developed by Hodrick and Prescott is used to de-trend GDP time series data by decomposing it into growth and cyclical components. The results point to a strong decrease in potential output growth compared to the pre-crisis potential output growth of the Western Balkans.
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Lažetić, Marina. "'Migration crisis' and the far right networks in Europe: A case study of Serbia." Journal of Regional Security 13, no. 2 (2018): 131–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.5937/jrs1802131l.
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During the 'migration crisis' Serbia has been a transit country. However, several thousands of migrants and refugees remained 'stuck' in the Western Balkans after the closure of the Balkan Route, and issues related to their potential integration provided a platform for Serbian far right movements and parties to establish new and stronger relationships with their European counterparts. This changed the far right landscape in the Western Balkans and allowed anti-European narratives to strengthen. This paper identifies the 'new far right' which is on the rise in Serbia, and its relationships with the larger network of European far right movements. Based on field interviews and social media content analysis, the paper draws a conclusion that if the EU fails to take a more active role in making integration an attractive option for the Western Balkan countries, the rise of far right movements in the region could present a serious security threat.
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Todorova, Marija. "The Western Balkans in translated children’s literature." Transnational Image Building 10, no. 1 (July 12, 2021): 94–114. http://dx.doi.org/10.1075/ts.20011.tod.
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Abstract This study approaches translations as framing and representation sites that can serve to either contest or promote stereotypes. Critically looking at textual and visual images of the source culture, the discussion considers how the particular location of different participants in the translation production process contributes to the presentation of violence as a predominant image of Western Balkan nations. The analysis uncovers networks of source-based production participants focusing on images of ‘nesting’ Balkanisms and self-representations centring on love and humaneness. On the other hand, networks led by editors located in the target culture often emphasise the preconceived stereotypes of dominant violence in the Western Balkans or turn towards globalising the images of violence.
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Griessler, Christina. "The V4 Countries’ Foreign Policy concerning the Western Balkans." Politics in Central Europe 14, no. 2 (September 1, 2018): 141–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/pce-2018-0013.
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Abstract This contribution explores the Visegrad Four’s (V4) foreign policy initiatives in the Western Balkans by considering each state’s interests and policies and the evolution of joint V4 objectives. My underlying hypothesis is that the foreign policy‑related behaviour of individual states is shaped by certain roles that they assume and by their national interests. This work uses role theory to explain the V4 states’ foreign policies both generally and in the specific case of the Western Balkans. The V4 have prioritised cooperation with this region, and I analyse the programmes of the last four V4 presidencies (Slovakia 2014-2015, the Czech Republic 2015-2016, Poland 2016-2017 and Hungary 2017-2018) to reveal key foreign policy objectives and explore why they were selected. At the same time, I examine the interests of each V4 country and the reasons for their joint attention to the Western Balkan region. My analysis shows that the V4 perceive themselves as supportive and constructive EU and NATO members and see their policies as reflective of European values. Moreover, they believe they should contribute to EU enlargement by sharing experiences of economic and political transformation with the Western Balkan states and serving as role models.
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Friedman, Victor A., and Brian D. Joseph. "Eastern and Western Romance in the Balkans – the Contrasting but Revealing Positions of the Danubian Romance Languages and Judezmo." Journal of Language Contact 14, no. 1 (September 30, 2021): 127–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/19552629-14010005.
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Abstract The fate of two languages in the Balkans under conditions of language contact is discussed here. These languages, representing different branches of the Romance family, are the Ibero-Romance language Judezmo from the eastern branch and the South Danubian language Aromanian from the western branch. Both have been subject to intense contact with other languages in the Balkans but they show differential outcomes of this contact and thus differential degrees of involvement in the Balkan sprachbund. We document the similarities and differences in these outcomes, offer an explanation of their causes, and discuss the consequences they have for understanding the Balkan sprachbund.
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Trbojević, Milovan, and Branislav Svirčević. "Strategic Directions of Activities of the Intelligence and Security Agencies of the Western Balkans." Kultura polisa 19, no. 1 (April 14, 2022): 98–120. http://dx.doi.org/10.51738/kpolisa2022.19.1r.6ts.
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The Western Balkans is geographically positioned on an important route between Asia and Europe, while the Balkan countries are mostly politically oriented towards the West, which is why it can be said that the entire Balkans has both a Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian position. As an interesting hub with a transit position, which has many advantages in terms of the flow of goods, services, people, capital and ideas, there are many threatening phenomena in the Balkans. The largest of them are organized crimes, cybercrime, terrorism, violent extremism, radicalism, sabotage, subversive activities, intelligence work and diversion. Contemporary global and regional security-political trends and dynamics of viral threatening phenomena require the specific organization of the intelligence-security sector. In addition to the imperative that the security-intelligence system has a strong normative and organizational basis, it is necessary to determine precise strategic directions, so that every activity of the security-intelligence capacities would be purposeful and goal-oriented. Strategic directions are the result of political and legal codification processes, which result from the need for continuous realization of political and security interests of the Western Balkan countries through the operation of the security and intelligence system. In order to achieve the goals defined by the strategic directions, it is necessary to permanently, continuously, coordinate and control the operation of the intelligence and security apparatus of the countries of the Western Balkans. The mentioned convergences in the basic principles do not exclude the existing divergences of the strategic orientations of the security-intelligence systems, which requires a detailed and comprehensive analysis.
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Olszewski, Paweł. "Green Deal a Zielona Agenda dla Bałkanów Zachodnich." Sprawy Międzynarodowe 74, no. 3 (December 30, 2021): 75–88. http://dx.doi.org/10.35757/sm.2021.74.3.06.
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This article deals with the important topic of the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans and its place in the perspective of the so-called Green Deal of the European Union. The author discusses the issue of the green deal and agenda from the perspective of the Union's foreign policy and the process of adaptation of the Balkans in the integration process. The topic of the participation of the Western Balkans in the pro-ecological activities of the European Union is based on a collective document presented in 2019 by the European Union as the Green Deal, setting new directions for the development of EU policy. The countries of the Western Balkans have dealt with this issue extensively in the document entitled "Sofia Declaration for the implementation of the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans". Their activities in this area are related not only to the fulfillment of assumptions regarding environmental protection but also in the context of the potential enlargement of the European Union and the willingness to join the group of Member States. In this regard, the Balkan states perceive the Green Agenda as a broader spectrum of their functioning in united Europe and the possibility of appearing on the European arena by fitting into the pan-European trend. The complexity of these processes is extremely large and covers several aspects, the implementation of which is possible not only with the support of the European Union but above all as part of the development of regional cooperation.
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Gajin, Dragan. "What’s New in Western Balkans?" Yearbook of Antitrust and Regulatory Studies 11, no. 18 (2018): 285–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.7172/1689-9024.yars.2018.11.18.11.
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Western Balkan jurisdictions (Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Macedonia (FYROM)) are often outside the focus of the competition community in the EU. This paper aims to rectify that, by providing an overview of the most interesting competition law developments in these jurisdictions during 2017. The overview will show that, despite similarities in their competition legislation, the observed jurisdictions differ when it comes to their priorities in competition law enforcement: while for some the accent is on merger control, for others it is on antitrust. The paper also highlights certain peculiarities of the observed jurisdictions, even though they are all based on the EU model. These include the existence of a notification system with respect to individual exemptions of restrictive agreements in three out of the four observed jurisdictions.
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Godovanyuk, Kira. "Western Balkans Summit in London." Scientific and Analytical Herald of IE RAS 1, no. 4 (July 1, 2018): 73–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.15211/vestnikieran420187378.
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Akova, Sibel, and Gülin Terek Ünal. "THE CULTURE OF COEXISTENCE AND PERCEPTION OF THE OTHER IN THE WESTERN BALKANS." Journal Human Research in Rehabilitation 5, no. 1 (April 2015): 39–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.21554/hrr.041505.
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Throughout the 550 year Ottoman rule over the Balkan lands, where even today internal dynamics threaten peace and justice, how and through what means the Ottoman Empire achieved consistency, security and peace is a question to which a number of political scientists, sociologists, communication scientists and history researchers have sought an answer. The most interesting point of the question is that the peoples of the Balkans, a living museum comprising a number of different ethnic groups and religious beliefs, have reached the point where the culture of coexistence has been internalised and dynamics have moved from the conflict of identities to cultural integration. The Balkans are a bridge to the East from Europe and indeed to the West from Turkey, incorporating a patchwork political and cultural geography, the geopolitical location and a richness of culture and civilization, being one of the areas attracting the attention of researchers from different disciplines and capturing the imagination of the peoples of the world throughout history. Balkan studies are almost as difficult as climbing the peaks in the areas and meaningful answers cannot be reached by defining the area on a single parameter such as language, culture or traditions, while the phenomenon of the other can also be observed within the culture of coexistence in this intricate and significant location. Different ethnic groups with different cultures, such as the Southern Slavs (Bosniaks, Montenegrans, Serbs, Croats and Slovenes) as well as Turks, Albanians, Bulgarians, Balkan Jews, Balkan Romany and Wallachians (Romanians and Greeks). Although these peoples may have different religious beliefs, in the ethnically rich Balkan region, religion, language, political and cultural differences are vital in the formation of a mosaic, making the discourse of coexistence possible and creating common values and loyalties, breaking down differences. The Serbian and Montenegrin peoples, belonging to the Greek Orthodox Church, the Croat and Slovene peoples belonging to the Catholic Church and the Muslin Bosniaks have shared the same lands and livee in coexistence throughout the historical process, despite having different beliefs. However, in some periods the other and the perception of the other have replaced common values, leading to conflicts of interest, unrest and religion based wars. After the breakup of the Yugoslavian Federal Socialist Republic, Slovenia, Croatia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo, defined by the European Union as the Western Balkans, have established themselves as nation states of the stage of history. The scope of our study is these Western Balkan Countries, and we will use the terminology Western Balkans throughout.
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Husic-Mehmedovic, Melika, and Emir Agic. "Regional Approach to Luxury Market Segmentation: The Case Of Western Balkans." International Journal of Management Science and Business Administration 1, no. 5 (2015): 7–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.18775/ijmsba.1849-5664-5419.2014.15.1001.
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Nature of the luxury brand requires limited market in order to maintain exclusivity. Individual countries in the Western Balkans are not lucrative per se, therefore, regional segmentation is needed in the case of luxury brands. Countries of Western Balkan, i.e. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia are all post-socialist, post-war countries currently going through major transitions. Rather small markets are yet to be established in its final form politically, economically, socially and culturally and individually. Foreign investors and world’s leading companies are concerned mainly about the size of the potential individual market. The main idea of this paper is to analyze luxury consumption in the Western Balkans region in order to identify some consumption patterns and to describe the regional luxury consumer. Broad study among 800 respondents in four countries defines demographics and buying intent of the luxury consumers. Moreover, this study identified luxury consumer region-wide and helps luxury brand managers to target those small countries together as a rather significant market segment of approximately 20.000 consumers. The region that has shared similar historical and cultural facts proved to have similar or the same luxury consumption patterns. This paper has significant practical value for the luxury brand managers and their segmentation of the Western Balkan countries. They will decide much easier to target this region knowing that consumers are sharing the same lifestyle and preferences regarding the luxury consumption. Main limitation of the research is the average income of the sample. However, the top market segment is always difficult to reach with surveys, therefore, qualitative approach might be used in the further studies in this regard.
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Enika, Abazi. "Geopolitics in the Western Balkans: linkages, leverages and gatekeepers." Academicus International Scientific Journal 24 (July 2021): 85–108. http://dx.doi.org/10.7336/academicus.2021.24.06.
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With the end of the Cold War, Western Balkans countries have embraced the perspective of integration into the Euro-Atlantic structures, with the exception of Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina regarding accession in NATO. The return of international system from hegemonic to competitive followed by the ambiguities that accompany the integration into the Euro-Atlantic structures marked the return of competitors like China, Russia and Turkey in the regional affairs. To map out sources of influence and the context in which foreign interferences affect decision-making and interests, transfer ideas and norms in the region, the paper uses the concept of linkages that facilitate the understanding of opportunities and constrains, benefits and costs resulting from established relationship between Western Balkan countries and different international and regional powers. The paper makes a multi-level investigation of linkages developed between Western Balkans and the leverage of the most influential actors during the last decade, without undermining historical and societal context that favor of disfavor them.
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Malaj, Emi. "European Integration, Economy and Corruption in the Western Balkans." European Journal of Economics and Business Studies 6, no. 2 (August 15, 2020): 48. http://dx.doi.org/10.26417/517utm22z.
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The European Union countries and institutions have constantly contributed to the European integration process of the Western Balkan countries. Albania, Serbia, Montenegro and the Republic of North Macedonia are official candidates for EU membership. Chapters and accession negotiations have been opened with Montenegro and Serbia, whereas Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina are potential candidate countries. Poverty, unemployment and corruption are probably the most common problems that Western Balkan citizens face. Corruption, in itself, does not lead to poverty, but it stimulate poverty through indirect channels by affecting economic, social, political and administrative conditions. Both, the enhancement of business climate for private investors, and a higher level of integration with the European Union will decrease unemployment and will boost economic growth. Authorities should follow concrete policies in order to encourage private sector investment, increase regional integration, and create new jobs. The future of the Western Balkans is in the European Union.
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Zoppi, Marco. "A Flow within the Flow: Dynamics of 2015 and Post-2015 Migration from the Western Balkans to EU Countries." Southeastern Europe 43, no. 1 (May 3, 2019): 50–74. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/18763332-04301003.
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This article focuses on the recent flow of asylum seekers from the Western Balkans to EU countries. It contends that the comparison with statistics of other extra-EU28 asylum seekers and migrants reveals specific features that justify the description of mobility from the Western Balkans as a distinct “flow within the flow”. In fact, such a flow was not rooted in humanitarian issues, but was rather part of the established labor mobility dynamics in the region. In this sense, mobility from the area is not understood as a new trend but in terms of continuity stemming from the economic system interconnecting the EU and its neighborhood, of which the Balkans are a part. The pivotal year for the analysis is identified as 2015, when mass migration flows transited along the “Balkan Route” in their quest to reach the central and northern countries of the continent. The author concludes that, although on a larger scale, the 2015 flows that originated from the Western Balkan countries are the outgrowth of ongoing relations, especially for what concerns labor market dynamics between the two neighboring regions. This article features some data and maps elaborated in the framework of activities for the targeted analysis “MIGRATUP – Territorial and Urban Potentials Connected to Migration and Refugee Flows”, financed by ESPON, which ran from July 2017 to July 2018.
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Ulunyan, A. A. "The Balkans in academic discourse and foreign policy practice of today’s Hungary." Urgent Problems of Europe, no. 2 (2022): 102–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.31249/ape/2022.02.06.
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The article examines the role and place of the Balkans in the academic discourse and foreign policy practice of today’s Hungary in the context of the existing approaches to the Balkan problematics in the Hungarian historical tradition. The author draws attention to the fact that the modern academic view of the Balkans in Hungary has certain features, expressed in the attempts to determine the structure of the Balkan space from the standpoint of political and historical geography. Therefore, representatives of the Hungarian academic and expert-analytical community are studying the Western Balkans as a special part of the region, designed, in their opinion, to solve a specific problem – the accession of the Western Balkan countries to the European Union. In the current Hungarian realities, academic discourse has made it possible to formulate the «Balkan agenda» in a broader sense. The main topic of the discussions is the problem of Hungary's interaction with both the whole region and its «special part». At the same time, when pursuing the Balkan policy, the Hungarian side seeks to use the capabilities of the Visegrad Group and use Hungary’s membership in the EU to promote the idea of the need for the earliest possible admission of the countries of the Western Balkans to this Union. This approach is intended to strengthen the Hungarian position in the Balkan region as a whole, as well as draw US attention to Hungary’s efforts to implement this project. The article attempts to determine the place and role of the «Balkan vector» in Hungary’s foreign policy from the point of view of the interests of the center-right political forces currently in power, headed by Prime Minister V. Orbán. During his second term in office (since 2010), the Balkan theme has taken one of the leading places in Hungary’s foreign policy. First of all, Hungary actively supported a number of countries in the region in their aspiration to join the EU. At the same time, economic ties with the region were strengthened with the parallel use of «soft» power to form a positive image of Hungary in the socio-political circles of particular countries of the peninsula. Strategically, the Balkan theme of contemporary Hungarian discourse not only reflects the country’s foreign policy agenda, but also shapes it.
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Dragutinović-Mitrović, Radmila, and Predrag Bjelić. "Trade regimes and bilateral trade in the EU enlargement process: Focus on the Western Balkans." Acta Oeconomica 65, no. 2 (June 2015): 249–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1556/032.65.2015.2.4.
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This paper aims at investigating the role of different trade regimes in determining the bilateral trade of Western Balkan countries and the enlarged European Union between 2001—2010. Special focus is laid on the intra-regional trade of Western Balkan countries and complementarities of this sub-regional trade integration and the EU accession process. Using panel data, we estimated the gravity model of bilateral exports from Western Balkan and Central Eastern European countries to the core EU members in the 2001–2010 period. The results confirm the importance of EU membership for the development of acceding countries’ trade and shed light on asymmetrical trade regimes as important factors of boosting the bilateral trade flows. Additionally, CEFTA 2006 has a significant contribution to intra-regional Western Balkans trade.
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Hetemi, MA Atdhe. "Orientalism, Balkanism and the Western Viewpoint in the Context of Former Yugoslavia." ILIRIA International Review 5, no. 1 (June 30, 2015): 311. http://dx.doi.org/10.21113/iir.v5i1.22.
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This research paper examines the role of the Orientalist and Balkanist discourse in the Former Yugoslavia with a particular focus on Albanians. Here, Western Orientalist and Balkanist stereotypes of the Former Yugoslavia are examined arguing that the Orientalism and Balkanism of people living in the Former Yugoslavia is and was viewed differently from the standard by the West and by the people living in the Former Yugoslavia in the way how they perceive each other. The first part of this research paper treats the Orientalism and Balkanism in the context of people living in the Former Yugoslavia, in general.The second part of this research paper analyzes the case study of the application of the Orientalist and Balkanist theoretical lenses on one of the nations living in the Former Yugoslavia, namely Albanians. Here, some explorations and thoughts are provided on how Albanians define themselves and how they were perceived by the South Slavic majority living in the Former Yugoslavia.There are three authors and, subsequently, three seminal works that shall serve as pillars of this theoretical analysis: concepts of Edward Said’s “Orientalism,” Bakic-Hayden’s theories on Orientalist variations and nesting Orientalism, and Maria Todorova’s ground-breaking analysis of the external practices of Balkans representation. These provide a useful theoretical framework through which to explore the distribution of the Orientalist and Balkanist discourses in Former Yugoslavia.
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Lampe, John. "Serbia and Southeastern Europe between Global and East European History." Tokovi istorije 29, no. 3 (December 31, 2021): 277–95. http://dx.doi.org/10.31212/tokovi.2021.3.lam.277-295.
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Drawing on a half century of Balkan research and publication that started in Belgrade, John Lampe reviews three new Western histories of the region and their attention to Serbia from prominent Western historians. Germany’s Calic examines only Southeastern Europe, while Connelly from the US and Bideleux and Jeffries from the UK include the Balkans in their volumes on Eastern Europe.