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The article provides parallel accounts of the European Union (EU) regional policies towards the Southern Mediterranean and the Western Balkans. The EU has made institutional frameworks for the development of multilateral relations with these regions. The EU has aimed at boosting economic growth and development and act as a security and stability provider. The EU has found it possible to shift the boundaries of the Mediterranean and the Western Balkans with the integration of Cyprus and Malta.

We present the full-length mitogenome sequences of four European water frog species:Pelophylax cypriensis, P. epeiroticus, P. kurtmuelleriandP. shqipericus. The mtDNA size varied from 17,363 to 17,895 bp, and its organization with theLPTFtRNA gene cluster preceding the 12 S rRNA gene displayed the typical Neobatrachian arrangement. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference revealed a well-resolved mtDNA phylogeny of seven EuropeanPelophylaxspecies. The uncorrectedp-distance for amongPelophylaxmitogenomes was 9.6 (range 0.01–0.13). Most divergent was theP. shqipericusmitogenome, clustering with the “P. lessonae” group, in contrast to the other three newPelophylaxmitogenomes related to the “P. bedriagae/ridibundus” lineage. The new mitogenomes resolve ambiguities of the phylogenetic placement ofP. cretensisandP. epeiroticus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the relationship between nationalism and religion and its adaptation to cultural values and ideological differences in countries on the Balkan Peninsula. The incorporation of religious concepts in movements for state formation and ethnonational expansion in the Balkans, the effects of institutionalization and de-institutionalization in the post-communist era, the historical association of nationalism with ethnic identity, the secular reforms in Turkey, the influence of the Ottoman Empire in Greece, and the impact of post-colonialism in Cyprus are discussed.