INTERNATIONAL ORDER AND THE BALKANS FOLLOWING THE COLLAPSE OF THE COLD WAR BALANCE OF POWER
Etudes balkaniques (Sofia) 2021 N 3
Veton Latifi
South East European University
North Macedonia
Abstract: International order is one of the key concepts of international relations of the 19th and 20th centuries following the wars and the shifting of major paradigms. When the Cold War ended it became more relevant for the Balkans since the balance of power was no longer the most suitable model for regional peace, following the dangerous ethnic tensions, and new realities. The paper intents to explain the main values and characteristics of the contemporary international order, specifically since the collapse of the balance of power; and to analyze what this means for the Balkans, both in terms of international involvement in the Balkans, and the positioning of Balkan states in the system of international relations? The study identifies the main patterns that shape contemporary international order, noting the increased impact of globalization, and shifting of the models of international order towards the stability, geopolitical relevance, and development of the Balkans.
Keywords: international order, Balkans, Cold War, balance of power, international relations.
THEORIZING NATIONALISM: THE NATIONAL IDENTITY AS A PARTICULAR FORM OF COLLECTIVE IDENTITY AND ITS POLITICAL RELEVANCE IN THE BALKANS
Etudes balkaniques (Sofia) 2017 N 1
Veton Latifi,
South East European University
Abstract: The creation of the national identity apart that it can take a particular form of the collective identity, it can take as well as a way of the transformation of an ethnic group in a multiethnic state into a self-conscious political entity, or eventually as Paul Brass suggests by the amalgamation of diverse groups and the formation of an inter-ethnic, composite or homogeneous national culture through the agency of the modern state. The identities of nations are mainly defined through the common traditions, history, and culture of their people. But in the case of divided nations it is not easy to structure their identities solely on this basis having in mind that, at the time of partition each parts of the nation it has been almost identical in ethnical, linguistic and cultural view. Ethnicity and ethnic groups are the key players when we speak about the holders of cultural diversity in the political sphere. Ethnic groups are a central source of values and identity, significantly more so than class, so much so that the modern state has been unable to absorb them.
The paper explores the political importance of the process of creation of the national identity as a particular form of collective identity through comparative analyses of the politics in ethnically plural societies. The emotional link between place and national identity is a crucial factor in the Balkan’s region, having in mind that one and the same place is often claimed by several nations attached to the politics of ethnically plural societies. Discussing the contemporary dividing line between ethnic and national identity, the paper aims to identify the factors and scenarios of the inability of the nation- states and unclear future of the multi-ethnicity concept.
Keywords: National Identity, Nationalism, Ethnicity and Nation