Kosovo and Serbia: Contested Options and Shared Consequences (Russian and East European Studies)

Following the 1992 breakup of Yugoslavia, the region descended into a series of bloody conflicts marked by intense ethnic and religious hatreds. Kosovo emerged at the epicenter of these disputes and the site of innumerable human rights violations, as Serbia, united with Montenegro at the time, sought to remove the Albanian presence. Kosovo (roughly ninety percent Albanian) declared independence in 2008, and although it is recognized by over one hundred UN member states, it is still not recognized by Serbia. This volume brings together scholars of Serbian, Albanian, Christian, and Muslim backgrounds to examine the Serbian-Albanian dynamic in Kosovo through historical, political, economic, and social perspectives. The contributors offer fresh insights on the consequences of internationalizing the conflict, the impact of international agencies and institutions since the 1999 intervention, the continuing human rights violations, present day party politics, and the prospects for economic cooperation with Serbia, among other topics. Kosovo and Serbia will inform scholars and students of the region, exploring the nature of a tragic political and strategic struggle that has existed for centuries and drawn the attention of the entire international community. Contents 6 Foreword - Andrea Lorenzo Capussela 10 Acknowledgments 18 Acronyms 20 List of Municipalities 24 Introduction. Leandrit I. Mehmeti and Branislav Radeljić 28 1. Kosovo: A Case Study in the Unintended Consequesnces of Communist Nationality Policy, 1968-1986 - Veljko Vujačić 39 2. Settling the Self-Determination Dispute in Kosovo - Arben Qirezi 62 3. Kosovo in the Official Rhetoric of the European Union and Russia - Branislav Radeljić 88 4. Governance Challenges to Interethnic Relations in Kosovo - Ilire Agimi 110 5. Serbian Political Parties and the Kosovo Question - Dušan Spasojević 131 6. The Capacity and Performance of the Eulex Mission in Kosovo - Mina Zirojević 155 7. The Role of Minorities in the Serbo-Albanian Political Quagmire - Gent Cakaj and Gëzim Krasniqi 174 8. Minority Returns to Kosovo: Migration Policies, Practices, and Theory - Tanja Pavlov 193 9. Economic Cooperation as a Way toward Reconciliation and EU Integration for Kosovo and Serbia - Gazmend Qorraj 221 10. Perspectives of the Normalization of Relations between Kosovo and Serbia - Leandrit I. Mehmeti 241 Notes 268 Contributors 330 Index 332 Azan on the Moon is an in-depth anthropological study of people's lives along the Pamir Highway in eastern Tajikistan. Constructed in the 1930s in rugged high-altitude terrain, the road fundamentally altered the material and social fabric of this former Soviet outpost on the border with Afghanistan and China. The highway initially brought sentiments of disconnection and hardship, followed by Soviet modernization and development, and ultimately a sense of distinction from bordering countries and urban centers that continues to this day. Based on extensive fieldwork and through an analysis of construction, mobility, technology, media, development, Islam, and the state, Till Mostowlansky shows how ideas of modernity are both challenged and reinforced in contemporary Tajikistan. In the wake of China's rise in Central Asia, people along the Pamir Highway strive to reconcile a modern future with a modern past. Weaving together the road, a population, and a region, Azan on the Moon presents a rich ethnography of global connections Edited By Leandrit I. Mehmeti And Branislav Radeljić. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.