The European Perspectives of the Western Balkans: “Invisible Threats” vs. Visible Opportunities.

Despite all the achievements of the past few years, the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, FYR Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro) are still perceived as a region characterised by high political and economic instability. The events of the last fifteen years have left many problems unresolved which are still today impeding lasting peace and stability. Among the multiple problems of the Western Balkan countries today, diffused criminal activities are probably among the most complex, as they have proved very difficult to eradicate. Although there have been a number of positive initiatives in recent years against organised crime in Southeast Europe, also within the numerous activities of the Stability Pact for Southeast Europe and the Southeast European Cooperation Process, criminal activities continue to represent a serious impediment to achieving more permanent regional stability, and as such are also a major threat to security for the whole of Europe. Organised crime in the Western Balkans is also considered a major obstacle for integrating these countries into the European Union (E.U.). A better understanding of these problems is therefore fundamental, as it can help in the search for remedies for combating crime in the Western Balkans in the future, as well as contribute to their swift integration into the E.U. In trying to shed light on these complex issues, this paper will first give an overview of the multiple factors that have contributed to widespread criminality in the Western Balkans (part 2). Next, it will examine E.U. policies towards the Western Balkans, both during the 1990s and in the post-1999 period, when the Stabilisation and Association Process finally offered these countries prospects of E.U. membership (part 3). Within such European perspectives, some critical elements of E.U. policies towards the Western Balkan region are discussed (part 4). The paper ends with a few concluding remarks (part 5). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]