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A recent publication of the Balkan Policy Advisory Group in Europe (BiEPAG), entitled “Geopolitically insignificant in the EU’s inner courtyard”, concluded that non-Western countries have gained ground in the region. while the influence of the european bloc continues to shrink, and its “soft” power is evaporating.
“Despite the EU devoting incomparable resources to the Western Balkans, its impact is not much appreciated“, The report says.
It states that Brussels’s influence is felt only in Montenegro. The region then, stopping in other spheres of influence: The role of the United States is stronger in Albania and Kosovo, Russia continues to maintain a strong influence in Serbia, Turkey “has in the tongs” Northern Macedonia and Bosnia Herzegovina. Nikolaos Tzifakis, Associate Professor at the University of the Peloponnese, a member of BiEPAG and one of the study’s co-authors, sees this trend with concern.
It not only shows that the role of the EU is underestimated in the region, but also proves that many citizens of the Western Balkans no longer see the European Union as a normative power that radiates the power of attraction and inspires positive change with the ideas of his, says Tzifakis.
“If this trend is consolidated,” he continues, “the distance between the EU and the societies of the Western Balkans will deepen.” The expert further added that he is not sure if the EU really has a sustainable plan for the region, beyond that of keeping the problems under control.
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