Rome – ESI at lecture on intervention in the Western Balkans

ESI’s Gerald Knaus was invited to give a lecture on “Can intervention work? Stability and risks in the Western Balkans” at the NATO Defence College.

In his lecture, Gerald argued how NATO’s intervention in the Balkans worked, becoming a story of success since many of the countries from the Western Balkans are now democracies and NATO members.

In addition, Gerald outlined the current risks in the region 25 years after NATO’s intervention, and how nationalism and the desire to redraw borders have made war thinkable again, especially with the current war in the Ukraine. Gerald concluded that a credible EU accession offer needs to made to the Western Balkans.

• “Open EU Single Market to the Balkans”
• “Escaping the Hamster Wheel: For a reformed, merit-based EU accession process that offers a credible interim goal”
• “Abandon clichés about Bosnia: Push EU-related reforms instead of arbitrary conditions”
• “Start EU accession talks with North Macedonia: Keep your word. Strengthen reformers”
• “No partition: Why Kosovo and Serbia must not discuss territory”
• “Anti-Corruption Report for the West Balkans: Measure corruption in order to fight it”