Synod in Thessaloniki: Expectations and dangers in the shadow of the war
The German government is no longer putting strong pressure on Belgrade and Pristina to agree on a solution to the Kosovo issue soon. [A.P. Photo / Markus Schreiber]
Mobility in the Balkans is high and linked to the Ukrainian crisis. Turmoil from the Russian invasion has begun to appear in SE Europe and Westerners are rushing to propose. In Thessaloniki, the day after Friday, the Athens Summit for Cooperation in SE Europe is resurrected, on the initiative of Athens, in the presence of Mr. Olaf Solz and Mr. Charles Michel. Mr. Solz will arrive in Thessaloniki, coming from Kosovo and Belgrade, on Saturday he will go to Skopje and from there to Sofia.
The leaders of Serbia, Albania, Northern Macedonia and (for the first time) Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, EU candidate countries, are meeting in Ohrid today as part of the Open Balkans initiative. . Commissioner for Enlargement Mr Varcheli.
Mr. Nikos Dendias continues his tour in the Western Balkans with a visit to Pristina and the Ecumenical Patriarch Mr. Bartholomew invites the leadership of the Church of Northern Macedonia to Fanari. Europeans are rushing to keep alive the vision of Western Balkan leaders and societies for their countries to join the EU. and ask them not to allow the ranks of Russian propaganda to drag them into dangerous paths. European and American appeals are focused on preventing a resurgence of ethnic strife, concerns that it will try to instrumentalize Russia if it chooses to shift the geopolitical conflict to the flammable Balkans. Chancellor Soltz is not pushing hard on Belgrade (mainly) and Pristina to agree on a Kosovo solution soon, with President Bucic “gathering” the pro-Russian Bosnian Serb leader who is threatening to respond and disband it. state. And in Sofia, where its leadership continues to revive conflicts of past centuries, to prevent the start of accession negotiations of the same Northern Macedonia with the EU.
At the heart of European and American efforts is the prevention of a resurgence of ethnic strife.
The Europeans “run”, seeing the danger of destabilization “from the east”, to cover their oligarchies from the past, which have eroded the trust of Balkan societies, creating fertile ground for Russian, and not only, propaganda and influence. The shift to the cloudy future of EU membership of the Western Balkans has caused people frustration and a loss of confidence in the European leadership.
The dramatic developments in Ukraine have awakened the worst nightmares for the West, primarily the Balkans, who felt that they found themselves unprotected by their Western allies in whom they had security and a future.
The apparent shift in US geopolitical orientation toward the Pacific has created a sense of insecurity in recent years and the impression that Americans have stopped caring about the Balkans and are leaving behind a vacuum. Now the Americans are back (if they have ever left) reinforcing with military agreements, modern armaments, the Balkan Arc (Albania, Northern Macedonia, Greece) and the Baltic states. Up close is Europe, which in the Balkans is also trying to find its “pace”, with the main weapon being their full integration into its structures.
As for the Thessaloniki summit, however, the Balkan capitals do not expect great things, apart from some declarations, without, however, considering it a pointless gathering.