The Rise And Fall Of Peacebuilding In The Balkans (rethinking Peace And Conflict Studies)

This book examines the evolution of liberal peacebuilding in the Balkans since the mid-1990s. After more than two decades of peacebuilding intervention, widespread popular disappointment by local communities is increasingly visible. Since the early 2010s, difficult conditions have spurred a wave of protest throughout the region. Citizens have variously denounced the political system, political elites, corruption and mismanagement. Rather than re-evaluating their strategy in light of mounting local discontent, international peacebuilding officials have increasingly adopted cynical calculations about stability. This book explains this evolution from the optimism of the mid-1990s to the current state through the analysis of three main phases, moving from the initial 'rise', to a later condition of 'stalemate' and then 'fall' of peacebuilding. Roberto Belloni is Professor of International Relations at the University of Trento, Italy. He has written extensively on peacebuilding and democratization, with particular reference to the Balkans. He is the holder of the Jean Monnet Chair 'The European Union and the Western Balkans: Enlargement and Resilience' (2018-2021) Front Matter ....Pages i-x Peacebuilding in the Balkans (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 1-25 The Evolution of Peacebuilding (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 27-52 Front Matter ....Pages 53-53 Stability and the Anti-corruption Agenda (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 55-79 Addressing the Symptoms Through Civil Society Building (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 81-106 Front Matter ....Pages 107-107 EUtopia and the Pull of Integration (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 109-134 Western Balkans Transitions and the Role of the European Union (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 135-169 Front Matter ....Pages 171-171 Local Views: Scepticism Towards Europe and Its Consequences (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 173-202 Undoing International Peacebuilding from Below? (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 203-228 Conclusions (Roberto Belloni)....Pages 229-243 Back Matter ....Pages 245-250 Roberto Belloni. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.