The Western Balkan countries have been both a popular subject matter for diachronic analysis and a 1990s favorite. The significant changes that followed the most recent times of conflict in the region mostly evolve around the process of Europeanization. Despite the plethora of analyses, most approaches to the Western Balkans suffer from theoretical stagnancy, ex parte political practice, and detachment of politics from societal needs. This volume is the work of a team of theorists and practitioners who attempt a multidisciplinary approach to Western Balkans reality. An Agenda for the Western Balkans offers a critical view on issues that have been over-analyzed in mainstream terms and opens a discussion that will occupy researchers and practitioners for years to come. It addresses novel topics and engages in innovative approaches that cut across disciplines of social sciences (political science, international relations, sociology, historiography, geography, political economy) and levels of analysis (local, national, regional, European, global). This collection is a pioneer theoretical and practical guide towards a sustainable future for the Western Balkans.

This title explores ways for the Western Balkan countries to improve growth prospects through deepening of regional integration and improving selected elements of their investment climate. It analyzes areas relating to trade in goods and services, regional integration, and selected aspects of the investment climate. It suggests that countries in the region could reap sustained growth payoffs by focusing on deepening regional integration, improving human capital, reducing telecommunication costs and pre-empting energy shortages.

Small States and EU Governance shows that the EU's rotating Council presidency and small states' capacity to make use of it have been underestimated. It examines the political objectives the presidency serves and presents a systematic and comparative assessment of its nature and influence in internal market and foreign policy issues.

This book delves into Turkey’s increasing ethno-religious, pragmatic, and complicated involvement and activism in the Balkans since 2002, under the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi – AKP). It primarily focusses on the intersectionality between domestic and foreign policy that has played an important role in Turkey’s recent relations with the Balkan countries as well as exploring how the Europeanisation process influences this relationality. Broadly, the chapters in this volume posit that religion, ethnicity and kin politics are indispensable components of identity politics and have the capacity to transform Turkey’s foreign policy attitudes as well as the orientations of the Balkan countries. The book also asserts that the impact of the processes of Europeanisation and de-Europeanisation on the relationship between Turkey and the Balkans needs to be included into the analysis. This book will be useful to students, researchers and academics interested in Politics, International Relations and Southeast European Studies. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of Southeast European and Black Sea Studies.

With the expansion of the European Union, the countries of Southeast Europe have finally been brought together within one socio-political entity. The restructuring of these economies following globalization and neoliberalization has meant that this region has become much more open to geopolitical shifts and trends. While the various countries have all entered into the slow process of European integration, the historic fragmentation of this region has led to various conflicts and contradictions in the restructuring and transition of national economies. This volume provides a theoretical and comparative overview which examines the prospects for spatial cohesion in this region. With the need to handle persisting problems and conflicts from the past while coping with new economic and political structures, Southeast Europe proves to be a challenging yet fruitful testing ground for how best to overcome fragmentation and establish a long-term process of social and economic integration.

Recent developments in the global economy, such as the Greek budget crisis, have led to new focus on the role of Europe, and in particular on the countries in Europe’s south-eastern region. This new volume from a global set of contributors explores south-east Europe’s present and future direction, placing it in the context of the history of the region since the end of the Second World War. Through an exploration of Europe’s cultural and political economy, this volume argues that the south-east part of Europe is currently the most crucial component of Europe’s future development. The book charts the post-World War Two ‘evolution’ of the continent, taking in such key turning points as the 1971 breakdown of the fixed exchange rate system, the breakdown of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, and the 2008 global financial collapse. In doing so, the book seeks to explain why and how the current events in south-east Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean can be seen as the weakest points in the wider capitalist system in Europe, and how the issues faced by these regions can provide insight into a possible re-design of European governance. Including a comprehensive editorial introduction, this timely and important book is fully up to date with recent global events, including the 2011 Arab Spring, and provides context and comparison with the countries in the EU.

The economies of the European countries are still in recession, the development process is at a standstill, companies are facing financial difficulties, and the EU’s monetary policy is tight and focused on lowering inflation. The fiscal problems and high debt levels of the northern European countries are of great importance, and they are the consequences of both the European economy’s structural characteristics and the EU’s policies. The economic area of Eastern Europe, the Balkans and the Black Sea countries is also vital, due to its special economic characteristics. The effects of the economic crisis on this particular area are catalytic, while the prospects for recovery are doubtful. The present book deals with the key aspects of the economic crisis in Europe, especially focusing on southeast Europe and the Balkans. The consequences of the crisis in these countries are analyzed and suggestions for how to address the crisis are outlined.

This book unveils the potential of utilizing EU Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) as an instrument of promoting the rule of law to third states. In doing so, the book combines development economics, foreign policy and legal perspectives at three levels of analysis of four sectors to introduce the concept of "EU value-promoting RTAs". The book demonstrates that the EU RTAs bear considerable potential to be strategized as instruments of promoting the rule of law in third states, requiring, however, overcoming strict divides between EU political and economic cooperation, and values and acquis conditionality in its relations with third countries. This book will be of key interest to scholars and students of European Studies, European Union Law, EU external action/foreign policy, EU trade agreements and Development Studies, as well as to NGOs and think tanks that work on European affairs.

The Western Balkan countries are characterized by an entanglement of different national, ethnic and religious groups. Within all Balkan states, nationalist rivalries have been and are exploited by political leaders as a propaganda tool when faced with internal unrest or unpopularity. Yet, the proximity of ethnic communities to their countries of ethnic origin tie all the Balkan states into a common problem: the spillover effect of regional insecurity. Existing and future disputes require an exhaustive survey of national, ethnic, religious, territorial, economic and political problems, and this is precisely what this volume sets out to do.

With the European Union ́s upcoming eastern enlargement, Europe is confronted with the necessity of creating security and stability beyond the EU borders in Eastern and Southeastern Europe. This task includes not only numerous risks but also opportunities to face the challenges of the 21st century. This volume provides policy-oriented recommendations and differentiated insider knowledge about the regional situation in Russia, Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus. Authors from the region analyze policies by state and by key issues such as energy, transportation, the future of Kaliningrad or the regional hot spot in Trandniestria. A concept for a "Multi-Layered Europe" is developed for the strategic dilemmas concerning the current debate on "WIder Europe." The unique alliance between analytical output and strategic thinking makes the book valuable for the academic community and for persons responsible for Europe ́s future.