The Western Balkans and the EU: 'the hour of Europe'
Today, more than fifteen years after the end of the wars of Yugoslavia’s dissolution, the ‘Balkan question’ remains more than ever a ‘European question’.
The Balkans by 2030: present trends and future challenges
Seminar - 06 June 2011
The seminar took place at Hotel Europe in Sarajevo on 6-7 June 2011. The opening remarks were delivered by Valentin Inzko, European Union Special Represetative to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bakir Izetbegovic, member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Ambassador Gary Robbins, Head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Among the participants at the seminar were included Jonas Jonsson, Head of the Western Balkans Unit of the European Union External Action Service, Bosse Hedberg, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden to BiH, Jonathan Moore, Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of the United States States of America.
Key themes discussed at the seminar were identity-based politics, wealth distribution, social and civil society networks, and the Western Balkans’ relationships with Turkey, Russia and the USA.
Documents
In the Media / Comments
-
'The Western Balkans by 2030' conference was cited by Turkish Radio and Television (TRT):
20 June 2011The Conference organized jointly by the EU Institute for Security Studies and the Foreign Policy Initiative of Bosnia Herzegovina saw the participants giving out message that the Western Balkans will be part of the EU in the future.
-
Álvaro de Vasconcelos was interviewed by Hurriyet Daily News:
13 June 2011Speaking to the Daily News after a conference on Balkan integration in Sarajevo, a top EU foreign policy analyst says Turkey’s role as a mediator is integral to peace and stability in the region. However, he says, Turkey’s larger profile in the Middle East is underappreciated by the EU.
-
The seminar "The Western Balkans by 2030" was mentioned in numerous media outlets in BiH:
08 June 2011Please follow the link for a pdf summary of the seminar's media coverage:
-
EUISS seminar 'The Western Balkans by 2030' was mentioned by OHR/EUSR BiH:
06 June 2011“The first step towards reflecting the aspirations of citizens is to form a government,” the HR/EUSR told participants at a conference in Sarajevo organised by the EU Institute for Security Studies and the BiH Foreign Policy Initiative.
