"MUSLIM by NATIONALITY" and the upcoming Neo-Ottomanism
"MUSLIM by NATIONALITY" and the upcoming Neo-Ottomanism

Summary/Abstract: The upcoming years are vital for the stability of the Balkans. The degree in which stability, or the lack thereof, will be present will highly depend on how well aligned are the political elites and intellectuals with the radical ideologies that are surfacing. A very firm act of disownment of radicalism that would come from the elites would raise some red flags among the mainstream society in regard to the danger that such ideologies pose. Even so, we must take into account, that in the case of states of the Balkans, information has more difficulties in reaching people in short time. This is mainly due to the rugged ter-rain, lack of efficient technology and poor infrastructure. The radicalization of Islam can be only perpet-uated through exploiting the weakest points of the local societies, mostly having to do with poverty and the lack opportunities for communal development. Using personal, material, gains as a means of twisting the minds of otherwise peaceful people and drawing them into fundamentalism is a technique that proved to be often efficient in the case of communities that are struggling with poverty. As time will progress, we will see the confrontation between the two Islamic traditions, now present in region, to be more visible, the future stability of the region will also be determined by which will gain the most ground.

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