THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION
Russia’s war on Ukraine has taken both the Western Balkans and the rest of the world by surprise. Stuck in its inability to make progress in its EU accession efforts, the region is now reliving memories of the ‘90s – refugees, bombed buildings, corpses in the streets. While the new geopolitica...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Ovidius University Press
2022-12-01
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| Series: | Annals of the "Ovidius" University of Constanţa. Political Science Series |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://annals-politics.univ-ovidius.ro/editorial-board/ |
| _version_ | 1797953505042890752 |
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| author | Oana Cristea |
| author_facet | Oana Cristea |
| author_sort | Oana Cristea |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Russia’s war on Ukraine has taken both the Western Balkans and the rest of
the world by surprise. Stuck in its inability to make progress in its EU accession efforts,
the region is now reliving memories of the ‘90s – refugees, bombed buildings, corpses
in the streets. While the new geopolitical reality of the entire world from February 24,
2022, will continue to have economic and political implications, the continuation and
even increase of military, political and economic commitments in the region of both the
EU and the US are playing a crucial role in defining the future of the Western Balkan
states. The main goal of this paper is to discuss the impact of the war in Ukraine on the
Western Balkans countries (WB6), and to assess how these implications are influencing
their EU accession path. While the research is focused on the analysis of the current
situation, the aim is to highlight those critical points where EU strategic action is
needed in order to mitigate the effects of the war in Ukraine on the WB6. The paper
also addresses the idea that only through an increased resilience of the WB6 and a
strong engagement in this region, EU will be able to counteract the subversive actions
of the Kremlin. In this sense, the paper presents the dependencies of the WB6 on
Russia and how its influence can drive the region into more instability, by analysing the
reactions to the war in each of these countries. Ultimately, the paper focuses on the
implications the war in Ukraine has on EU’s strategic autonomy, as well as on the
priorities which need to be calibrated to the current needs and in the logic of an open
strategic autonomy, in which the WB6 are an essential piece of the puzzle, helping the
EU build a stronger profile in the global arena. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T23:04:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-14273f0c3cfc4e07ac8e940484948391 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2286-315X 2668-0831 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T23:04:11Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | Ovidius University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Annals of the "Ovidius" University of Constanţa. Political Science Series |
| spelling | doaj.art-14273f0c3cfc4e07ac8e9404849483912023-01-13T14:47:06ZengOvidius University PressAnnals of the "Ovidius" University of Constanţa. Political Science Series2286-315X2668-08312022-12-011111155193THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGIONOana Cristea0PhD student, National University of Political Studies and Public Administration, Bucharest, RomaniaRussia’s war on Ukraine has taken both the Western Balkans and the rest of the world by surprise. Stuck in its inability to make progress in its EU accession efforts, the region is now reliving memories of the ‘90s – refugees, bombed buildings, corpses in the streets. While the new geopolitical reality of the entire world from February 24, 2022, will continue to have economic and political implications, the continuation and even increase of military, political and economic commitments in the region of both the EU and the US are playing a crucial role in defining the future of the Western Balkan states. The main goal of this paper is to discuss the impact of the war in Ukraine on the Western Balkans countries (WB6), and to assess how these implications are influencing their EU accession path. While the research is focused on the analysis of the current situation, the aim is to highlight those critical points where EU strategic action is needed in order to mitigate the effects of the war in Ukraine on the WB6. The paper also addresses the idea that only through an increased resilience of the WB6 and a strong engagement in this region, EU will be able to counteract the subversive actions of the Kremlin. In this sense, the paper presents the dependencies of the WB6 on Russia and how its influence can drive the region into more instability, by analysing the reactions to the war in each of these countries. Ultimately, the paper focuses on the implications the war in Ukraine has on EU’s strategic autonomy, as well as on the priorities which need to be calibrated to the current needs and in the logic of an open strategic autonomy, in which the WB6 are an essential piece of the puzzle, helping the EU build a stronger profile in the global arena.http://annals-politics.univ-ovidius.ro/editorial-board/war in ukrainewestern balkanssecuritygeopoliticsstrategic autonomy |
| spellingShingle | Oana Cristea THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION Annals of the "Ovidius" University of Constanţa. Political Science Series war in ukraine western balkans security geopolitics strategic autonomy |
| title | THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION |
| title_full | THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION |
| title_fullStr | THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION |
| title_full_unstemmed | THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION |
| title_short | THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION |
| title_sort | impact of the war in ukraine on the western balkans region |
| topic | war in ukraine western balkans security geopolitics strategic autonomy |
| url | http://annals-politics.univ-ovidius.ro/editorial-board/ |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT oanacristea theimpactofthewarinukraineonthewesternbalkansregion AT oanacristea impactofthewarinukraineonthewesternbalkansregion |