IMPACTUL CONFLICTULUI RUSOUCRAINEAN ASUPRA REGIUNII BALCANILOR DE VEST.

The war in Ukraine is fiercely fought for over 6 month and there are no signs that it will lose tempo in the near future. At the beginning of the invasion it seemed that Moscow will succeed in imposing its military and political agenda in a short period and in an easy manner. After half a year, through the determination of the Ukrainian people and with the strong support of the democratic countries the faith of the conflict in the eastern side of the European continent is on the verge of change. The same trends can be noticed in the dynamic of the “geopolitical resonance box” that is the Balkans. At the beginning of the invasion, Russia seemed to have a lot of support from the Balkan area, mainly in the countries that have developed through the history political, economic and cultural ties with Moscow. But this situation is changing with small steps: it started from the political condemnation of the aggression made by United Nations Organization where all 5 Western Balkan countries (that are members of the above mentioned international infrastructure) supported the stance, and months later it continues with military materials delivered by the NATO members from Balkans to Ukrainian forces that are fighting the invaders. From this point of view, the war in Ukraine has a big impact in the Balkans: it determines/pressures all countries from the area to clarify theirs geopolitical options – in favor of Russia or on the side of Western democracies. But there are signs that this process is not simple and it is not going to be short. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]