The Balkans in the New Millennium: In the Shadow of War and Peace (Outcast Europe)

Can the Balkans ever become a peaceful peninsula like that of Scandinavia? With enlightened backing, can it ever make common cause with the rest of Europe rather than being an arena of periodic conflicts, political misrule, and economic misery?In the last years of the twentieth century, Western states watched with alarm as a wave of conflicts swept over much of the Balkans. Ethno-nationalist disputes, often stoked by unprincipled leaders, plunged Yugoslavia into bloody warfare. Romania, Bulgaria and Albania struggled to find stability as they reeled from the collapse of the communist social system and even Greece became embroiled in the Yugoslav tragedy.This new book examines the politics and international relations of the Balkans during a decade of mounting external involvement in its affairs. Tom Gallagher asks what evidence there is that key lessons have been learned and applied as trans-Atlantic engagement with Balkan problems enters its second decade. This book identifies new problems: organized crime, demographic crises of different kinds, and the collapse of a strong employment base. This is an excellent contribution to our understanding of the area. Can the Balkans ever become a peace peninsula like Scandinavia? With enlightened backing, can it make common cause with the rest of Europe rather than being an arena of periodic conflicts, political misrule, and economic misery?

In the last years of the twentieth century, Western states watched with alarm as a wave of conflicts swept over much of the Balkan peninsula of South-East-Europe. Ethno-nationalist disputes, often stoked by unprincipled leaders, plunged Yugoslavia into bloody warfare; Romania, Bulgaria and Albania struggled to find stability as they reeled from the collapse of the communist social system; Greece, the only wholly Balkan state to remain outside the communist bloc, became embroiled in the Yugoslav tragedy.

This book examines the politics and international relations of the Balkans during a decade of mounting external involvement in its affairs. Tom Gallagher asks what evidence is there that lessons have been learned and applied as trans-Atlantic engagement with Balkan problems enters its second decade. His book identifies new problems: organized crime, demographic crises of different kinds, and the collapse of a strong employment base.

The Balkans in the New Millennium contains chapters on Bosnia, Serbia, Macedonia and Greece as well as on the Kosovo crisis and the relationship between the EU and the Balkan region. It should interest students, researchers and all those with a general interest in Balkans politics.

Can the Balkans ever become a peaceful peninsula like that of Scandinavia? With enlightened backing, can it ever make common cause with the rest of Europe rather than being an arena of periodic conflicts, political misrule, and economic misery? In the last years of the twentieth century, Western states watched with alarm as a wave of conflicts swept over much of the Balkans. Ethno-nationalist disputes, often stoked by unprincipled leaders, plunged Yugoslavia into bloody warfare. Romania, Bulgaria and Albania struggled to find stability as they reeled from the collapse of the communist social system and even Greece became embroiled in the Yugoslav tragedy. This new book examines the politics and international relations of the Balkans during a decade of mounting external involvement in its affairs. Tom Gallagher asks what evidence there is that key lessons have been learned and applied as trans-Atlantic engagement with Balkan problems enters its second decade. This book identifies new organized crime, demographic crises of different kinds, and the collapse of a strong employment base. This is an excellent contribution to our understanding of the area. Book Cover......Page 1 Title......Page 4 Copyright......Page 5 Contents......Page 6 Preface......Page 8 Acronyms......Page 14 1 Greece......Page 22 2 The road to war in Kosovo......Page 41 3 Milosevic and NATO collide over Kosovo......Page 77 4 Macedonia......Page 99 5 Serbia from 2000......Page 132 6 Bosnia......Page 153 8 The European Union in search of Balkan answers......Page 187 Conclusion......Page 207 Notes......Page 217 Bibliography......Page 237 Index......Page 244 Greece : a peace-making role lost and re-found ; The road to war in Kosovo ; Milosevic and NATO collide over Kosovo ; Macedonia : internal dangers supplant external ones 1990-2004 ; Serbia from 2000 : Milosevic's poisonous legacy ; Bosnia : redesigning a flawed peace process ; Still a danger-point : Kosovo under international rule ; The EU in search of Balkan answers Tom Gallagher provides a comparative appraisal of peace-keeping operations in the Balkans - including chapters on Serbia, Bosnia, Macedonia and Kosovo