Identitet kao osnova evropeizacije Zapadnog Balkana
Identity as a Basis for Europeanization of the Western Balkans

Summary/Abstract: In the widest sense of the word, Europeanization portrays complex interaction between European Union (EU) and nation-state. The complexity of this process is reflected in its dual nature. Europeanization has been traditionally identified as a political and economic transformation, while value-based dimension of this process related to European identity has been undermined. This analysis focuses on explaining the concept of Europeanization in order to reveal the Eurocentric paradigm which is dominant in EU-Western Balkans relations. Paradoxically, Eurocentric tendency to brand the Western Balkans as “other”, “non-European” and “ inferior” will prove to be an essential obstacle to an effective Europeanization of the region. The theoretical solution to overcoming the above-mentioned problem is based on the most important postulates of the constructivist approach such as: identity change, social interaction, mechanisms of involving the constructed “other” and the importance of identifying “self ” with the “other”.

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