Serbia's Foreign Policy: Substance and Rhetoric
Two years after Kosovo independence, the majority of Serbs still reel with the loss of their ancestral province and continue to resent the role the United States played in the break-up of their country. At the same time, most continue to support becoming part of "the West" and joining the European Union, and are almost equally eager to strengthen their country's political, cultural, and even military ties to the United States.
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Overview
Two years after Kosovo independence, the majority of Serbs still reel with
the loss of their ancestral province and continue to resent the role the
United States played in the break-up of their country. At the same time,
most continue to support becoming part of "the West" and joining the
European Union, and are almost equally eager to strengthen their country's
political, cultural, and even military ties to the United States.
As if such contradictory positions were not enough, Serbia's leaders have
recently come up with a foreign policy claiming no less than four pillars--European, American, Russian and Chinese. Starved for cash and desperate for new investment, Serbia is trying to prove this is a workable regional strategy, and not mere posturing.
No wonder some are calling Serbia's position schizophrenic, a mission
impossible. Yet Serbia's foreign minister, Vuk Jeremic, tops the country's list of most popular politicians, and is considered to be the only one able to bridge party lines and loyalties. Serbs seem captivated by the paradox of their country inching towards EU membership with US backing, while their top diplomat invests all his energy into thwarting US ambitions to secure UN membership for America's Kosovo Albanian protégés. Is there any substance to this policy, beyond playing to the nation's sense of self-importance? How did a foreign agenda born of domestic political necessity become the bedrock of an increasingly wobbly pro-Western coalition government in Belgrade?
This event will take place in the 6th floor boardroom.
Hosted By
Global Europe Program
The Global Europe Program is focused on Europe’s capabilities, and how it engages on critical global issues. We investigate European approaches to critical global issues. We examine Europe’s relations with Russia and Eurasia, China and the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. Our initiatives include “Ukraine in Europe” – an examination of what it will take to make Ukraine’s European future a reality. But we also examine the role of NATO, the European Union and the OSCE, Europe’s energy security, transatlantic trade disputes, and challenges to democracy. The Global Europe Program’s staff, scholars-in-residence, and Global Fellows participate in seminars, policy study groups, and international conferences to provide analytical recommendations to policy makers and the media. Read more
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