Introduction
1. Complexité des processus de transition en Europe médiane et dans les Balkans
2. Avancées et résistances du processus de démocratisation en Slovénie
3. Intervention exogène et mouvements endogènes en Bosnie et Herzégovine
4. Enjeux d’un protectorat transitoire au Kosovo
5. Pour une approche fonctionnelle
Postface
Bibliographie
The causes of the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia, the rationale behind
the current transition of South East Europe (SEE), and the prospects for the
overall stabilization and future development of the region have attracted
considerable academic attention in recent years. The New Balkans: Disintegration
and Reconstruction is another ambitious, although not particularly successful,
attempt at addressing 'socio-historical, cultural, political, economic,
sociological, diplomatic, geopolitical and security' questions by means of
analyzing the past, present, and future of the entire region.
The New Balkans is a collection of sixteen assorted essays by both established
and young authors from multiple academic backgrounds, including international
relations, political science, military, and sociological research. The first
section of this volume deals with historical legacies of ethnic conflicts, the
next four chapters examine economic transition and the development civil
society, while the final section scrutinizes the geopolitics and security issues
in the countries of Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, Greece, Turkey, and the former
Yugoslavia.
The New Balkans first looks into the distant past, particularly the conflicting
interests of the Great Powers, some characteristics of Ottoman rule, the rise of
Balkan nationalism in the 18th and 19th centuries, and the formation of nation
states. The volume also examines relatively recent history, particularly the
post-World War II socialist experience, the re-emergence of ethno-nationalist
tendencies in the 1990s, and the role of the European Union and NATO in the
disintegration of Yugoslavia. The New Balkans also pays attention to dominant
media discourses, sociological aspects of wars, and prevailing perceptions in
the region. The future prospects of SEE, including Turkish and United States
foreign policies, are examined as well.
Although the aspiration of the editors to offer a comprehensive regional
analysis is commendable, the volume suffers from numerous deficiencies. The most
striking is the terminological confusion, namely the fact that the terms
'Balkans', 'Western Balkans', 'South East Europe' and 'Eastern Europe' are often
used interchangeably without being previously defined.
Also, the historical legacies of the contemporary ethnic conflicts in the
Balkans, to which the editors allocate the entire first half of the book, seem
to dominate most other chapters as well. Besides, aesthetically and technically,
the volume leaves a lot to be desired with a rather dense and uneven page layout
and a number of spelling mistakes (including even the book title on the cover).
However, it needs to be highlighted that The New Balkans presents readers with
unique and extremely valuable regional perspectives. It is achieved though the
contributions from regional scholars, most of them of Greek origin, who have
worked working in Western universities and who possess an intimate comprehension
of local dynamics together with a broader international understanding of
regional problems. By employing primary sources, Victor Papacosma's 'The Balkans
and a Transforming NATO' skillfully illustrates how the Western Balkan
countries, especially Bosnia and Serbia, played a crucial, although not always
'user-friendly', role in NATO's post-Cold War transformation and even justified
its continued existence.
Yet, some regional voices tend to be excessively self-critical and even
contemptuous of South East Europe. Tina Mavrikos-Adamou rightly points out that
'social forces promoting civil society must be indigenous' originating from 'the
unique patterns of social and political development' in SEE (p. 288). However,
she cannot refrain herself from using phrases such as 'some form of' and 'some
sort of' whenever referring to the development of civil society and democracy in
SEE leaving the reader with the impression that the author at times does not
believe that the region enjoys any democracy at all. Although democratic
development in SEE is far from ideal, the use of such a condescending tone
cannot be justified.
What is more worrying, however, is that in several essays the reader is faced
with some rather insular, parochial, and dangerously stirring arguments,
especially the ones regarding the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).
Demetrius Andreas Floudas even seems to even suggest that Greece should change
its policy of preservation of the territorial integrity of its northern
neighbour (p. 105), which Alexandros K. Kyrou consistently calls 'Skopje' in the
closing chapter.
Additionally, in an honest attempt to redress a negative international portrayal
of the Serbs as the only villains in the Balkan wars of the 1990s, some
contributors use a rather uncritical and apologetic approach towards the
atrocities committed by the Serbs, without trying to put the acts of violence by
all sides in the appropriate context.
Although insightful at times, the volume gives the impression of a rather
chaotic and unfocused academic venture of varying standards. However, the major
weakness and the paradox of The New Balkans: Disintegration and Reconstruction
lies in the attempt to shed brand new light onto the Balkan conundrum by
following the same established premises, rigid preconceptions, and overtly
geopolitical discourse. As a consequence, the volume basically stays within a
traditional positivistic framework and falls short of successfully opening up
less explored aspects of the Balkan problematique.
With the European Union's upcoming eastern enlargement Europe, is confronted
with the necessity of creating security and stability beyond the EU borders in
Eastern and Southeastern Europe. This task includes not only numerous risks but
also opportunities to face the challenges of the 21st century.
This volume provides policy-oriented recommendations and differentiated
assessments for all nine states and entities of the region, as well as for the
policy areas of governance, economy and security. The authors explore the
unintended consequences and side-effects of massive support for reforms and
external influence on weak states. A concept for a "Multi-Layered Europe" is
developed for the strategic dilemmas concerning the current debate on "Wider
Europe." The unique alliance between analytical output and strategic thinking
makes the book valuable for the academic community and for persons in charge for
Europe's future.
The volume is one of two from a joint project on "Security in Europe and beyond
its borders" of the Bertelsmann Foundation in Guetersloh and the Center for
Applied Policy Research in Munich. The other volume is also available: Iris
Kempe (Ed.), Prospects and Risks Beyond EU Enlargement. Eastern Europe:
Challenges of a Pan-European Policy.
Preface - Werner Weidenfeld
Europe Beyond EU Enlargement - Iris Kempe, Wim van Meurs
Part I Strategy Reports
Governance: the Unequal Partnership - David Chandler
Economics: from International Assistance toward Self-Sustaining
Growth - Milica Uvalic
Security: from Powder Keg to Cooperation - Adrian Pop
Part II Country Reports
Albania: the Weakness of the State - Genc Ruli
Bosnia-Herzegovina: a Matter of Survival - Dzemal Sokolovic
Bulgaria: a Kingdom of Losers? - Stefan Popov
Croatia: between Central Europe and the Balkans - Radovan Vukadinovic
Kosova: A Fragile Agenda of Democratization - Ylber Hysa
Macedonia: a Promising Journey Interrupted? - Jovan Donev
Montenegro: Land of Frozen Reforms - Nebojsa Medojevic
Romania: the Eternal Candidate? - Alina Mungiu-Pippidi
Serbia: the Janus Head of State-Building - Dusan Janjic
This volume offers an analysis of the activities of the international community
in the Balkans since the 1995 Dayton Agreement. There has been substantial
investment in the region but so far the gains have been limited and doubts
remain as to the extent that sustainable security has been enhanced. There is a
need for serious reassessment of policies and priorities, but this depends on a
careful analysis of past successes and failures. The contributors seek to
provide this by examining intervention, not just in terms of military action and
the activities of major international agencies at state level, but also the
activities of outside NGOs within the local environment.
1.International Intervention (and Non-Intervention) in the Balkans Peter Siani-Davies
2.Intervention in the Balkans: An Unfinished Learning Process Mary Kaldor
3.The Concept of Humanitarian Intervention Vesselin Popovski
4.The controversies of Euro-Atlantic Interventionism in the Balkans Miroslav
Hadzic
5.Mostar: International Intervention in a Divided Bosnian Town, 1994-2001
Sumantra Bose
6.When Our Men Arrive: UNMIK's Post-Conflict Administration of Kosovo Emmanuela
C. del Re
7.International Intervention in Macedonia: from Preventative Engagement to Peace
Implementation Alice Ackermann
8.The Impact of International Intervention on Domestic Political Outcomes:
Western Coercive Politics and the Milosevic Regime Jasna Dragovic-Soso
9.From Kanun to Capacity-Building: The Internationals, Civil Society Development
and Security in the Balkans Steven Sampson
10.Securing the Community? An Examination of International Psychosocial
Intervention Vanessa Pupavac
11.Beyond Intervention? The Balkans, the Stability Pact and the European Union
Davis Phinnemore and Peter Siani-Davies
12.Gaps of Concern: an Inconclusive Conclusion Stephanie Schwanderner-Sievers
Routledge Advances in European Politics
Routledge
September 2003: 234x156: 240pp
Hb: 0-415-29834-2: £60.00 www.routledge.com
In 1939 the British government discovered that their policy of appeasing Hitler
was not working and that the United Kingdom needed allies. But in August of that
year the Soviets and Nazis signed a pact that was to alter everything -
especially for the vulnerable countries of the Balkans, who felt threatened not
just by the Third Reich but also by the USSR. In addition, there were those in
both Britain and France who actually wanted to go to war with the Soviet Union,
since the Russians were giving Germany much needed oil. Would war in the Balkans
help - or make a dire situation potentially terminal? After France fell in 1940,
the situation for Britain worsened again, since the country was effectively
alone, against an increasingly powerful Germany, and a Soviet Union that was
expanding. Christopher Catherwood's book explores how, under Churchill's
leadership, Britain dealt with these dilemmas.
CONTENTS: Introduction - The Problem up to 1939 - Britain's Failure in to Get
Turkey and the Balkans on Side, and Failed Talks with Stalin - Britain's Dilemma
in 1939 Gets Clearer - Britain and the Russo-Finnish War; the USSR and the
Caucasus Oil Fields; Italy Enters the War - Sir Stafford Cripps and Russia;
Further Balkan Reactions - Italian Invasion of Greece, and German Invasion of
the USSR - Conclusion: Was Churchill Right, or did we make a Horrible Mistake?
November 2003 224 pp 216x138mm
HB £45.00 0-333-74164-1
Homeland Calling: Exile Patriotism and the Balkan Wars
By Paul Hockenos
Over the last ten years, many commentators have tried to explain the bloody
conflicts that tore Yugoslavia apart. But in all these attempts to make sense of
the wars and ethnic violence, one crucial factor has been overlooked -- the
fundamental roles played by exile groups and émigré communities in fanning the
flames of nationalism and territorial ambition. Based in the United States,
Canada, Europe, Australia and South America, some groups helped provide the
ideologies, the leadership, the money, and in many cases, the military hardware
that fueled the violent conflicts. Atypical were the dissenting voices who drew
upon their experiences in western democracies to stem the tide of war.
In spite of the diasporas' power and influence, their story has never before
been told, partly because it is so difficult, even dangerous to unravel. Paul
Hockenos, a Berlin-based American journalist and political analyst, has traveled
through several continents and interviewed scores of key figures, many of whom
had never previously talked about their activities. In Homeland Calling,
Hockenos investigates the borderlessinternational networks that diaspora
organizations rely upon to export political agendas back to their native
homelands -- agendas that at times blatantly undermined the foreign policy
objectives of their adopted countries.
Hockenos tells an extraordinary story, with elements of farce as well as
tragedy, a story of single-minded obsession and double-dealing, of high
aspirations and low cunning. The figures he profiles include individuals as
disparate as a Canadian pizza baker and an Albanian urologist who played
instrumental roles in the conflicts, as well as other men and women who rose
boldly to the occasion when their homelands called out for help.
Paul Hockenos is a writer and political analyst living in Berlin. He is the
author of Free to Hate: The Rise of the Right in Post- Communist Eastern Europe,
and his articles and commentaries on Central Europe and the Balkans have
appeared in World Policy Journal, The New Statesman and Society, The Nation, and
The Christian Science Monitor, as well as many other periodicals. From 1997 to
1999 he worked in Bosnia and Herzegovina for the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe,
With the European Union's upcoming eastern enlargement Europe, is confronted
with the necessity of creating security and stability beyond the EU borders in
Eastern and Southeastern Europe. This task includes not only numerous risks but
also opportunities to face the challenges of the 21st century.
This volume provides policy-oriented recommendations and differentiated
assessments for all nine states and entities of the region, as well as for the
policy areas of governance, economy and security. The authors explore the
unintended consequences and side-effects of massive support for reforms and
external influence on weak states. A concept for a "Multi-Layered Europe" is
developed for the strategic dilemmas concerning the current debate on "Wider
Europe." The unique alliance between analytical output and strategic thinking
makes the book valuable for the academic community and for persons in charge for
Europe's future.
The volume is one of two from a joint project on "Security in Europe and beyond
its borders" of the Bertelsmann Foundation in Guetersloh and the Center for
Applied Policy Research in Munich. The other volume is also available: Iris
Kempe (Ed.), Prospects and Risks Beyond EU Enlargement. Eastern Europe:
Challenges of a Pan-European Policy.
Preface - Werner Weidenfeld
Europe Beyond EU Enlargement - Iris Kempe, Wim van Meurs
Part I – Strategy Reports
Governance: the Unequal Partnership - David Chandler
Economics: from International Assistance toward Self-Sustaining
Growth - Milica Uvalic
Security: from Powder Keg to Cooperation - Adrian Pop
Part II – Country Reports
Albania: the Weakness of the State - Genc Ruli
Bosnia-Herzegovina: a Matter of Survival - Dzemal Sokolovic
Bulgaria: a Kingdom of Losers? - Stefan Popov
Croatia: between Central Europe and the Balkans - Radovan Vukadinovic
Kosova: A Fragile Agenda of Democratization - Ylber Hysa
Macedonia: a Promising Journey Interrupted? - Jovan Donev
Montenegro: Land of Frozen Reforms - Nebojsa Medojevic
Romania: the Eternal Candidate? - Alina Mungiu-Pippidi
Serbia: the Janus Head of State-Building - Dusan Janjic
