Germany’s attitude towards current issues in the Western Balkans through the prism of the 2021 elections Cover Image

Odnos Nemačke prema aktuelnim pitanjima na Zapadnom Balkanu kroz prizmu izbora 2021.
Germany’s attitude towards current issues in the Western Balkans through the prism of the 2021 elections

Author(s): Despot Kovačević
Subject(s): International relations/trade, EU-Approach / EU-Accession / EU-Development, Geopolitics
Published by: Fakultet političkih nauka Univerziteta u Beogradu
Keywords: Germany; elections; Western Balkans; political elites; election manifesto

Summary/Abstract: The role of elections in the Federal Republic of Germany to the processes in the European Union and the surrounding countries has gained in importance in previous election cycles. The elections in 2021 are just a continuation of the growing influence on the processes related to European integration, and even the political processes in the Western Balkans. Political elites from the countries of the Western Balkans always have their own expectations from the elections in Germany, but also from the consequences of those elections, primarily in terms of the composition of the German government. The subject of research in this paper are the perceptions of political elites in the Western Balkans about the future attitudes of German parties and the new government towards Western Balkans and the source of these perceptions, which I basically find in election manifestos (election programs) of political parties. The analysis is based on election manifestos and the perception that the parties’ views on the Western Balkans have produced among political elites. These attitudes resulted in the initiation of certain unresolved issues in the Western Balkans, both during the election campaign and during the process of forming the government. Current issues that have implications for elections in Germany are primarily the rule of law and democracy in the Western Balkans, relations in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the High Representative, the Brussels Dialogue, and major projects such as the Open Balkans.

  • Issue Year: 2021
  • Issue No: 21
  • Page Range: 37-47
  • Page Count: 11
  • Language: Serbian
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