Experts and analysts at a NATO conference in Rome concluded that the Western Balkans could once again become "the powder keg of Europe, while the region is of strategic importance to the European Union and the Atlantic Council and in light of Russian aggression in Ukraine", the Italian agency "Adnkronos" reported, quoted by the Belgrade-based Beta agency, BTA reports.
NATO representatives and geopolitical experts participating in the conference pointed out that there is no longer a security periphery in Europe and stressed that "the EU and NATO must accelerate their strategic actions and accelerate the dynamics of accession, with the idea that the Western Balkans must remain connected to West".
Vesela Cherneva, Deputy Director of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), pointed out that "Serbia is the country that will open the accession for the entire region, because it has a very special role for the entire Western Balkans and when Serbia becomes part of the EU, it will open the door for others, including Kosovo".
According to the conference participants, "protecting the Western Balkans also means protecting freedom of movement, state sovereignty and peace on the continent, as well as protecting democracy, human rights and the rule of law, which are core values of NATO and the EU".
"Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine has highlighted the strategic importance of the Black Sea for Euro-Atlantic security, for energy security and ultimately for food security for Europe, as this region stretches from the Adriatic to the Black Sea - a crossroads that is vital because it connects Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean", it was said after the conference.
The participants agreed that the Western Balkans are going through a "period of political stagnation, instability, external intervention and internal conflicts", including political tensions related to "identity, the re-emerging desire to divide Bosnia and Herzegovina, the ongoing political instability in Serbia, the stalemate in resolving relations between Belgrade and Pristina over Kosovo".
The Director of the Operations Sector at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Charlotte Hellengren, pointed out that since the collapse of Yugoslavia, steps have been taken towards democratic transition in the countries of the Western Balkans, but "sustained operational efforts are still needed in Kosovo and Bosnia, because progress there could be jeopardized if the messages of division, political stagnation and reduced security continue.".