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Russian soft power in the Balkans: Bosnia and Serbia, two states in comparison

Author(s): Giulia Stefano / Language(s): English

Currently (2018), the two main supporters of the region, the USA and the EU seem both too taken by their internal problems. Europe is indeed losing its attractiveness because of its own crisis and above all after Juncker’s statement about no chances of enlargement in the next 5 years1, postponing the process to 2025. On the other side, there are Turkey and Russia. Turkey, with its neo-Ottoman foreign policy, is playing a great role in the area, offering a new authoritarian model. Russia, also exploiting this vacuum left by the West, is trying to affirm its influence, mainly using the Orthodox Church ties and weapons trade. The most affected countries are Serbia and Bosnia Herzegovina: in different ways, approaches and perspectives, but they are the ones Russia is looking to in strengthening its position in the region, above all after Montenegro’s NATO accession. Hence, the research is going to focus on the comparison between Russian interference in Serbia, always considered a great ally with shared roots and traditions, and BiH where Russian presence is peculiar, through a direct impact on the Serb and Croat political leaders.

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Perspectives of EU membership for BiH

Author(s): Giulia Stefano / Language(s): English

Although the positive attitudes of EU towards Western Balkans enlargement, so many steps have still to be taken in the region for achieving EU membership. Only Montenegro and Serbia, the former more than the latter, look ready for a forthcoming accession. Montenegro’s accession negotiations started in 2012 and at the moment it is the richest Western Balkans’ country1, it joined NATO last year, and the main problem to be overcome is corruption. Concerning Serbia, the biggest country of the region, for its controversies a possible accession would foster stabilisation in Western Balkans, nevertheless the relations with Pristina should be regularised before confirming any kind of membership. To the light of the EU proposals and intentions, it is necessary to understand which are the gaps to fill in BiH, for it to become a candidate country, and which are the political, social and economic aspects the country has to improve for achieving EU accession.

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The Regimental System and the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Author(s): Elliot Short / Language(s): English

The regimental system is a method of military organisation developed by the British Army over the last 300 years, variations of which can be identified in the present-day armed forces of numerous Commonwealth states including Australia, Canada, India, Pakistan, and the United Kingdom (UK). Despite its widespread application and well documented history, however, any definition of the Regimental System must remain fluid. Socio-economic developments, coupled with advances in technology and military organisation, means that the parameters of what a regiment is – in terms of structure, composition, identity, and purpose – are constantly changing. David French, in his detailed study of military identities in the British Army, postulates that ‘the language of the “regiment” is so shot through with anomalies that to talk of a “regimental system” is itself almost a misnomer, for there was much about it that was anything but systematic.’1Perhaps the only consistent observation of the Regimental System focuses on its abstract, emotional appeal. When joining a regiment, a soldier enters a community which offers them an inspirational heritage, a legacy to defend, and the support of a “family” in a manner considerably more personal than the faceless bureaucracy of an army organised along the lines of the continental system. Such a dynamic, it is argued, fosters esprit de corps and boosts the morale of troops, ultimately leading to increased combat effectiveness and cohesion. Over 130 years after Edward Cardwell reformed the British Army and established the Regimental System, the model was applied to the newly integrated Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosna i Herzegovina, BiH; AFBIH), a military with no significant historical links to the British Army or the wider Anglosphere. This paper will offer an overview of the origins and development of the regimental system in a number of countries, explain how such a system came to be applied in BiH, and compare the application of the system in the AFBiH with other militaries which utilise it. The strengths and weaknesses of the regimental system in the AFBiH will then be considered, and the report will conclude with an analysis of how the regimental system could be reformed in order to strengthen the AFBiH.

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The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Case Study: Implementation of Sustainable Development Goals in Bosnia and Herzegovina

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

Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a member state of the United Nations, committed itself to permanently contribute in improving the situation in the society, based on its priorities and needs. Im-plementation of the goals of sustainable development in Bosnia and Herzegovina coincides with the priorities in relation to its aspirations for membership in Euro-Atlantic integrations. This is confirmed by the statement of the Head of the European Union Delegation to Bosnia and Her-zegovina and EU Special Representative, Ambassador Lars Gunnar Wigemark, that the Reform Agenda is a great opportunity for Bosnia and Herzegovina to " to catch up with the rest of Eu-rope and join the EU family". In the document "Strategy of the Foreign Policy of Bosnia and Herzegovina for the period 2018-2023", it is emphasized that "that the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina will intensify their activities in order to contribute to the global sustainable development goals by adopting an ac-tion plan and roadmap for achieving the goals of sustainable development in the forthcoming period". However, there is still a lot of work to be done by local and national government repre-sentatives in meeting the sustainable development goals, and in particular the activities to be carried out in the forthcoming period in order to develop and adopt the National Strategy for Sustainable Development. The creation and implementation of this document is of utmost im-portance, both due to a better vision of the representatives of the national and local authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina towards the priorities of the implementation of sustainable devel-opment goals and the promotion of the visibility of the of sustainable development goals in the country. Finally, it should be emphasized that the willingness and interest of each country to fulfil the United Nations sustainable development is conditioned by its geographical position as well as economic, social and political conditions. Taking into account all these features, it is undeniable that Bosnia and Herzegovina's progress in implementing sustainable development goals is sub-ject to a lot of demanding work and planning, especially in those areas not explicitly mentioned in the United Nations Agenda.

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