Series:Beogradski centar za bezbednosnu politiku - POLICY PAPERS

Towards the Prevention of violent Acts at Sports Events: Proposal on a regional Cooperation Framework

Towards the Prevention of violent Acts at Sports Events: Proposal on a regional Cooperation Framework

Author(s): Marko Savković,Saša Đorđević / Language(s): English

Keywords: sport-events; violence; police co-operation; Western Balkans; prevention;

Since 2000 until today seven people were killed due to the sports violence in Serbia. Over the last two years the incidents of violence at and before sports events have generated political, academic and media debate. Incidents at the Genoa stadium Luigi Ferraris jointly with the incidents during the Pride Parade have just “spiced up” the current debate. Additionally the presidents of Croatia and Serbia came with the initiatives to establish joint regional football compe¬tition, similar to the one already existing in basketball, and to co-host the 2020 European Football Championship. Yet, the sport of such international character as football is generates considerable “degree” of insecurity, particularly in this region. Incidents are constantly repeated, not only as random or organized acts of violence but also in the form of different criminal activities. This paper places an emphasis on the prevention of violence. The aim of the paper is to stir public debate about the lack of regional co-operation framework in the fight against hooliganism and violence at the sports events. In that regard, we made a brief analysis of the current situation with the focus on the mechanisms of prevention, which are already in place within EU and other European countries. Finally, we propose the model of the regional co-operation framework. The essence of our idea is to establish an additional, eighth Task Force in the current SECI Centre organisational structure, with its HQ in Bucharest. We have named it Task Force on Prevention of Violence at Sports Events. In order to achieve this goal, it is necessary to build capacity through appoint Laison Officers that will be in charge of this metter within NFP of the SECI Centre member states. We emphasize that our idea is not to set up a new regional body for strengthening cooperation in the areas of justice and internal affairs; although there is a tendency among the Western Balkan countries to do so (we refer to the initiatives of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Croatia). Our goal is to build up on the already existing institutional framework of cooperation.

The Citizens on the Serbian-Albanian Relations and the Regional Security Cooperation

The Citizens on the Serbian-Albanian Relations and the Regional Security Cooperation

Author(s): Florian Qehaja,Arjan Dyrmishi / Language(s): English

Keywords: Serbian-Albanian relations; Kosova;

Security Research Forum Belgrade-Prishtina-Tirana is a joint project of the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy, the Kosovar Center for Security Studies (KCSS) and the Institute for Democracy and Mediation (IDM), three independent think-tanks from Belgrade, Prishtina and Tirana, specialised in security issues. The project aims to initiate research-based discussion on possible ways to improve the relations among Serbia, Kosovo and Albania. The debate should include think-tanks, academia, politicians and the media.

Constitutional provisions in the area of security a comparative table. Excerpts from 50 selected Constitutions

Constitutional provisions in the area of security a comparative table. Excerpts from 50 selected Constitutions

Author(s): Author Not Specified / Language(s): English

Keywords: security rules in constitutions; constitutional norms on security;

Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) presents an overview of comparative constitutional norms on security with a view to promote debate on constitutional reforms in Serbia in this area. The overview has taken a form of comparative table consisting of selected constitutional provisions of 50 states and entities altogether, divided by regions. The first chapter is dedicated to Western Balkans states and entities which, due to shared recent historical and political experience, represent a first point of reference for comparison with Serbia (excerpts of Serbian constitution are also provided in the table). The second chapter covers most of the Eastern and Central European states, that underwent similar political transitions since the 1990s and are now members of the European Union. The third chapter covers 15 other EU member states and Switzerland, usually referred to as the Western Europe. Selected constitutional provisions of several, also transitioned, former Soviet Union states are offered in the fourth chapter. Finally, aiming at a broader perspective, a random selection of other countries all over the globe is presented in the fifth chapter.

PANDEMIC MANAGEMENT: LESSONS LEARNED FOR A SAFER FUTURE

PANDEMIC MANAGEMENT: LESSONS LEARNED FOR A SAFER FUTURE

Author(s): Milja Dimitrijević,Rade Panić / Language(s): English

The COVID-19 pandemic (coronavirus disease), which was declared by the World Health Organisation on 11 March 2020, is one of the biggest challenges the world has faced since the end of World War II, as evaluated by major decision-makers in the world in the vast majority of countries worldwide. The pandemic is certainly primarily a problem and an issue in the field of public health. However, given the consequences it causes, the pandemic is a political and security issue, both nationally, regionally, and globally. There is almost no area of social life that has not been affected by the pandemic. During the first two years of its existence, the political, economic, and cultural dynamics changed completely. As a highly infectious disease that disrupts normal social functioning, the COVID-19 epidemic, like any epidemic, opens the door for politicians and national authorities to adopt measures aimed at preventing the spread of the disease. Although the pandemic in some way completely surprised social and political actors, its outbreak did not come as a surprise to experts who were announcing the possibility of an outbreak of a health crisis of this magnitude. Also in 2022, when the pandemic is no longer a topic of the utmost importance, as well as when the situation has calmed down, experts are warning that there is no room for great relaxation. Namely, not only that the COVID-19 pandemic is over yet, but there are warnings of an outbreak of a pandemic of new infectious diseases. That is why the team that worked on this analysis considered it necessary to reflect on all the good and bad things done in the management of the pandemic in Serbia, in order to be better prepared for the next one. The political and social context in which the pandemic management in Serbia is analysed is marked by a drastic decline in the level of democracy in the country, as well as the strengthening of authoritarian tendencies in the state and society within the process of “capturing the state” by the ruling elite. Unfortunately, Serbia cannot boast of successful results, especially if we take into account the number of deceased citizens, as well as the low level of vaccination compared to European Union countries. The number of deceased citizens in 2021 is as much as 18 percent higher than in the same period in 2020.1 Statistical data show that in 2021, most people died in Serbia within one year since the end of World War II.2 These data speak volumes about the results of the crisis management caused by the COVID-19 epidemic in Serbia. Hundreds of pages of an analysis can be written about the pandemic management in Serbia, because the subject matter of research is voluminous in its scope. Therefore, in this analysis, and due to limited space, the focus is on two aspects of pandemic management – the legal aspects of crisis management and the health system’s readiness to deal with the crisis. The analysis was created within the framework of informal cooperation between the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy and the Union of Doctors and Pharmacists of Serbia. The author of the paper on the legal aspects of pandemic management is a lawyer from the Union of Doctors and Pharmacists Milja Dimitrijević, while the part about the capacities of the health system was written by Dr. Rade Panić, the President of the Union of Doctors and Pharmacists. The analysis was created within the survey that was conducted from October 2021 to March 2022. Precisely because of that, some data in the analysis were presented during the writing of the analysis itself, which were relevant during the research and writing the analysis (for example, when writing about the number of infected citizens, or the number of deceased doctors). Finally, the analysis concludes with certain recommendations necessary to improve the management of the COVID-19 pandemic, but possibly some other pandemics in the future.

INSTRUMENTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION IN FIGHTING ORGANIZED CRIME

INSTRUMENTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION IN FIGHTING ORGANIZED CRIME

Author(s): Jelena Babić Barnes / Language(s): English

Kosovo - what do citizens know, think and feel?

Kosovo - what do citizens know, think and feel?

Author(s): Maja Bjeloš,Bojan Elek / Language(s): English

Although majority of Serbian citizens trusts the Government and supports the agreement that would resolve the Kosovo issue, half of them are not aware of what is the end goal in negotiations with Pristina. Only one fifth thinks that the goal is to preserve territorial integrity of Serbia (in line with UN SC Resolution 1244) whereas half believes this to be the ideal outcome of negotiations as well. However, predominantly negative opinion of Kosovo Albanians among the Serbian citizens, coupled with doubts regarding positive outcomes of the dialogue and the possibility of obtaining a long-lasting peace among Serbs and Albanians in the Balkans, show the existence of cognitive dissonance. In other words, citizens have a strong desire of returning Kosovo, but would not accept Kosovo Albanians having any prominent roles in public life in Serbia. The existence of these contradictory ideas can be traced throughout time: Serbian citizens support the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue but cannot imagine a peaceful coexistence between Serbs and Albanians; they show support for the agreements reached in Brussels and Washington, but do not see any benefits from them, etc. Data clearly shows significant soft power in the hands of the Serbian Government and their ability to affect and shape public opinion of the citizens, especially when taking into account that a significant majority (64%) predominantly relies on television for information, particularly on RTS (public broadcaster). Therefore, the Government obviously has the tools to influence citizens and gain their unwavering trust, yet these are not used to normalize relations between the two communities and the peoples.

RETHINKING THE DUTCH POSITION TOWARDS THE WESTERN BALKANS IN THE NEW SECURITY ENVIRONMENT IN EUROPE

RETHINKING THE DUTCH POSITION TOWARDS THE WESTERN BALKANS IN THE NEW SECURITY ENVIRONMENT IN EUROPE

Author(s): Arlinda Rrustemi,Luka Šterić,Marko Drajić / Language(s): English

GEOPOLITICS IS LOCAL: RAMIFICATIONS OF CHINESE PROJECTS FOR HUMAN SECURITY IN SERBIA

GEOPOLITICS IS LOCAL: RAMIFICATIONS OF CHINESE PROJECTS FOR HUMAN SECURITY IN SERBIA

Author(s): Maja Bjeloš,Vuk Vuksanović / Language(s): English

The research was conducted in three Serbian cities with large PRC investments -Smederevo, Bor and Zrenjanin - to establish the impact of these projects on local communities and how they affect human security, understood in terms of human rights and human dignity. In that regard, several forms of human security endangerment were observed in the course of the research project:• Environmental hazards: Since the arrival of the PRC investments, cities of Bor and Smederevo have recorded a major surge in the emission of various harmful particles. Environmentalists have so far filed several criminal charges against Chinese companies for air pollution, including pollution of the river Mali Pek. The future will bring further environmental challenges for the inhabitants of Zrenjanin, as the Linglong tyre factory could endanger the nature reserve Carska Bara as well as the food production in Vojvodina.• Public health: Serbia is a country with the highest rate of pollution-related deaths in Europe. Cities of Bor and Smederevo have experienced a rise in the rates of cancer and various other respiratory and heart diseases connected with industrial pollution.• Socio-economic and human rights: A feature of Chinese projects is the influx of labor from Asia to Serbia. A whole range of exploitative practices against foreign and domestic workers has been recorded in all PRC projects, including human trafficking of Vietnamese workers for the purpose of labor exploitation. Despite public pressure, the Serbian authorities are ready to tolerate violations of labor and human rights in order to maintain foreign direct investments, employment and political rating.• Rule of law: PRC projects are often declared as those of ‘national interest’ and are characterised by the lack of transparency and public scrutiny. PRC investors enjoy privileged treatment by local authorities and administration that adjust the legal framework and make numerous concessions at the expense of citizens and local communities.• Cross-cultural issues: The fact that Chinese workers are not trying to integrate and interact more profoundly with the local communities remains a big problem. In the absence of interpersonal communication and intercultural exchange, inter-ethnic and sexual assault-related incidents have also been recorded in some cases.• Surveillance: Chinese cameras equipped with face recognition technology have not been utilised in these cities to date, but local population fears that cutting-edge technology could be used as the PRC presence grows

PUBLIC ENTERPRISES AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

PUBLIC ENTERPRISES AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

Author(s): Nemanja Nenadić / Language(s): English

HOW CAN NATO CONTRIBUTE TO REGIONAL COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF TRAINING AND EDUCATION?

HOW CAN NATO CONTRIBUTE TO REGIONAL COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF TRAINING AND EDUCATION?

Author(s): Marija Ignjatijević / Language(s): English

DRUZHBA VIA HUNGARY: The impact of the construction of a new oil pipeline on Serbia’s energy security

DRUZHBA VIA HUNGARY: The impact of the construction of a new oil pipeline on Serbia’s energy security

Author(s): Branimir Đurović / Language(s): English

PANDEMIC MANAGEMENT: LESSONS LEARNED FOR A MORE SECURE FUTURE

PANDEMIC MANAGEMENT: LESSONS LEARNED FOR A MORE SECURE FUTURE

Author(s): Srđan Hercigonja,Gorana Pebić / Language(s): English

BEYOND SPUTNIK AND RT: HOW DOES RUSSIAN SOFT POWER IN SERBIA REALLY WORK?

BEYOND SPUTNIK AND RT: HOW DOES RUSSIAN SOFT POWER IN SERBIA REALLY WORK?

Author(s): Vuk Vuksanović,Srđan Cvijić,Maxim Samorukov / Language(s): English

PIERCING THE CHINESE WALL IN ZRENJANIN: CIVIC ACTIVISM VS. LINGLONG

PIERCING THE CHINESE WALL IN ZRENJANIN: CIVIC ACTIVISM VS. LINGLONG

Author(s): Ivan Živkov / Language(s): English

A brief history of citizens’ views on the dialogue between Belgrade and Priština. What has (not) changed?

A brief history of citizens’ views on the dialogue between Belgrade and Priština. What has (not) changed?

Author(s): Maja Bjeloš,Bojan Elek / Language(s): English

Negative headlines, positive tone: how military exercises, peacekeepinig missions and IPAP are seen in Serbian media

Negative headlines, positive tone: how military exercises, peacekeepinig missions and IPAP are seen in Serbian media

Author(s): Pavle Nedić / Language(s): English

In Serbian media peacekeeping missions and military exercises are mainly referred to in the context of Kosovo. Multinational operations are overwhelmingly brought up in positive context. Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP) is mostly touched upon in positive tone, but the reports are generally very polarized and the number of neutral texts is rather small. Overall, military exercises are the most frequently mentioned topic. However, in the reports on military exercises, Russia is never referred to in a negative tone. On the other hand, NATO is primarily mentioned in a neutral or a negative tone. This analysis focuses on media reporting regarding selected keywords, namely military exercises, peacekeeping missions, multinational operations and IPAP. These keywords were selected because they receive considerable attention in the media, but there is often a mix of true and false information in reports on them. The analysis covered 383 media pieces published between 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019. Media sources included online portals, printed newspapers, TV and radio. The goal was to determine how often and in what context these subjects are mentioned in the media, which media sources report on them the most and whether they are brought up in positive, neutral or negative tone. We also measured how often key international actors, namely NATO, Russia and the EU are referred to. Furthermore, the tone towards NATO and Russia was analyzed in media pieces regarding military exercises and IPAP respectively.

SERBIA IN THE JAWS OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

SERBIA IN THE JAWS OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Author(s): Author Non Specified / Language(s): English

The public opinion poll conducted by the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP) in October 2020 shows that the society is divided, both when it comes to measures taken in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic and regarding the reaction of the competent institutions to the health crisis. Although no less than a third of the Serbian citizens do not believe in or have serious doubts about the existence of the COVID-19 pandemic,1the vast majority of them are of the opinion that the health crisis will have serious economic consequences, while a third are convinced that it has affected the level of democracy in Serbia. Most people see the pandemic as a threat to human and national security, but they are divided over how this crisis has affected their everyday lives. Polarisation was identified in relation to the level of trust in state institutions. Citizens trust the health care system the most, which is not surprising since the health care system commonly occupies a very high position in general surveys conducted to measure trust in all institutions. The reason for the high level of trust in the health system is the fact that it is the entire health system – not just the specialised COVID departments – that is bearing the brunt of the pandemic. As for other institutions, the percentage of trust in the President of the Republic and the Crisis Task Force for the Protection of the Population from the Infectious Disease COVID-19 stands at almost fifty-fifty, which again reflects the broader picture of citizens’ (dis)trust in these permanent and temporary institutions. One of the reasons for the division in the perception of disease as a threat to the personal safety of citizens is poor informing and reporting on the course and consequences of the pandemic (frequent contradictory messages provided by the Crisis Task Force and the authorities), which has been identified in the survey as one of the biggest problems of pandemic management. An enormous number of citizens perceive China as the largest financial and humanitarian donor during the period of the pandemic, which also influences - in the general survey - positive opinions about foreign countries, where China ranks first. Despite the fact that it was in fact the European Union that helped Serbia the most in the fight against the Coronavirus, in both financial and humanitarian terms, in the eyes of the citizens China still convincingly holds the first place.

Many Faces of Serbian Foreign Policy

Many Faces of Serbian Foreign Policy

Author(s): Author Non Specified / Language(s): English

COVIDOCRACY IN THE ELECTION PROCESS

COVIDOCRACY IN THE ELECTION PROCESS

Author(s): Srđan Hercigonja / Language(s): English

Belgrade and Prishtina: Dialogue about the Dialogue

Belgrade and Prishtina: Dialogue about the Dialogue

Author(s): Author Non Specified / Language(s): English

2020 has been marked by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has impacted all aspects of life, from our daily routines to international politics. The pandemic has also had an effect on Belgrade-Prishtina relations, serving as a pretext for the fall of the Kosovo Government led by Albin Kurti at the end of March 2020. One of the first moves by the new Government of Kosovo, headed by Avdulah Hoti, was to withdraw the measures of so-called reciprocity with Serbia, introduced by their predecessors. This meant the removal of the formal barrier to the continuation of the dialogue with Serbia, which had been deadlocked since the end of 2018. The dialogue indeed revived – on multiple tracks. Presidents Vučić and Thaçi were invited to a White House meeting on June 27, which was followed by speculation that the meeting would result in Serbia recognizing Kosovo’s independence. However, the Hague-based Kosovo Specialist Chambers filed an indictment against Thaçi, charging him with a range of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during Kosovo war, and the White House meeting was cancelled. On the other hand, the Brussels Dialogue between Belgrade and Prishtina resumed shortly afterwards, at both the high political level and the so-called expert level. A number of meetings took place from July to September in which a range of issues were discussed, including economic cooperation, missing and displaced persons, the status of minority communities and mutual financial claims between Kosovo and Serbia. The postponed White House meeting eventually took place on September 3 and 4.The documents signed in Washington were described as “historic”, primarily by Trump’s administration, but also by President Vučić and the media under his control. However, the content of the documents suggests that we cannot talk about significant progress in the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Prishtina. Still, the intensified involvement of the United States in this process remains a fact and, against this background, four think tankers and journalists from Belgrade, Brussels, Prishtina and Washington will seek to discuss the following questions: How will the US presidential election scheduled for November 3 affect US involvement in the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia? What resources does the EU have at its disposal to encourage the two sides to reach a comprehensive agreement? How will internal political change in Serbia and Kosovo – or the lack of it – affect the dialogue? How will the conflicting interests of the US, the EU, Russia and China affect the domestic political situation in Kosovo and Serbia, and consequently the normalization process? What is a feasible solution for future relations between Kosovo and Serbia?