THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION
THE IMPACT OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE ON THE WESTERN BALKANS REGION

Summary/Abstract: Russia’s war on Ukraine has taken both the Western Balkans and the rest of the world by surprise. Stuck in its inability to make progress in its EU accession efforts, the region is now reliving memories of the ‘90s – refugees, bombed buildings, corpses in the streets. While the new geopolitical reality of the entire world from February 24, 2022, will continue to have economic and political implications, the continuation and even increase of military, political and economic commitments in the region of both the EU and the US are playing a crucial role in defining the future of the Western Balkan states. The main goal of this paper is to discuss the impact of the war in Ukraine on the Western Balkans countries (WB6), and to assess how these implications are influencing their EU accession path. While the research is focused on the analysis of the current situation, the aim is to highlight those critical points where EU strategic action is needed in order to mitigate the effects of the war in Ukraine on the WB6. The paper also addresses the idea that only through an increased resilience of the WB6 and a strong engagement in this region, EU will be able to counteract the subversive actions of the Kremlin. In this sense, the paper presents the dependencies of the WB6 on Russia and how its influence can drive the region into more instability, by analysing the reactions to the war in each of these countries. Ultimately, the paper focuses on the implications the war in Ukraine has on EU’s strategic autonomy, as well as on the priorities which need to be calibrated to the current needs and in the logic of an open strategic autonomy, in which the WB6 are an essential piece of the puzzle, helping the EU build a stronger profile in the global arena.

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