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Nationalism and security challenges in the Western Balkans: the unresolved Albanian question.
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Uzelac, Nikola |
| Copyright Year | 2013 |
| Abstract | As the black clouds of the past are reluctantly dissipating over the region known as the Western Balkans 1 and several blue patches of sky emerge in recent years, one wonders if the century old fuse that kept on reigniting had finally burned out. The conflicts, the bloodshed and horror of the past century seem as if they are a closed chapter of an ancient Sophoclean tragedy. Is this signalling a firm path to Euro-integration and prosperity? As history has shown, this region is almost never fully stable due to the existence of many different national identities in a relatively small geographic area. Trouble still lurks within unresolved past conflicts, memories and states created and maintained by foreign intervention coupled with the prospect of future states. The firm grip of the international community appears to have a stabilizing effect on the volatile mass but will this be a sufficient future strategy? This paper will place particular focus on the still unresolved Albanian question that can perhaps be seen as a possible future threat to the security of the region. By looking at the cases of Albanian national question, and trends among the Albanian population in Kosovo, the Preshevo Valley 2 and the still somewhat fragile state of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 3 , this paper will make an attempt to determine whether these trends among the Albanian population have the potential to set in motion mobilizing forces that can affect the current status quo. By examining these cases and questioning a realistic possibility of a new conflict in the Balkans together with the implications of such an event will be discussed. In the past theories of nationalism have made attempts to explain similar phenomena and will no doubt be a useful asset in better understanding the topic at hand. Moreover, the recent growth of nationalism promotes or evokes ‘dreams’ of the ‘glorious past’ such as the myth of “Great Albania” or perhaps “Greater Kosovo” 4 which could have the effect of fanning the flame if further pursued. Scattered among neighbouring states the Albanians seem to be rediscovering their nation. Just like structures in the other Balkan states the Albanian nationalists have been dreaming of their own ‘Great’ state. Do these ‘dreams’ have the potential of turning into a nightmare for all concerned? The question here is if the above mentioned is just weak nationalist rhetoric or a serious issue smouldering in the dark. 1 Defined by the European Union as the region encompassing Albania and former Yugoslavia (minus Slovenia) 2 The center of the Albanian community in Serbia with Albanians comprising 54.6% of Bujanovac and 89% of Preševo (and 26% in Medveđa) 3 Hereafter: FYROM. 4 An idea including the territory of Kosovo plus the areas with considerable Albanian population in former Yugoslavia (Southern Serbia, FYROM and Montenegro) |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://dspace.lib.uom.gr/bitstream/2159/15977/3/UzelacNikolaMsc2013.pdf |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
