The Balkan Crisis Zone

The countries of the Western Balkan region constitute a main item in Austrian, EU and international foreign policy. In 2001 the governments of the region were generally oriented towards reform and strived for closer relations with the European Union. The political, economic and social reforms they have set in train will contribute towards sustainable peace and stability in the region. Several elections that were observed by the OSCE reflected as well the democratic progress that has been made. Despite this considerable progress by comparison with previous years many of the major problems remain unsolved: Some extremist elements still endanger stability, and the reform movements are confronted with difficulties arising from the legacies of earlier regimes such as disastrous economic and social situations, weak institutions, corruption and organised crime.

Events in Macedonia demonstrated that there is still a danger of another Balkan war, which has been prevented only by close cooperation between the international community and peace-minded political actors at national level. International engagement will be necessary for the immediate future, which for the EU means a continuation of its present massive commitment in the region. Austria stressed repeatedly that the current concentration of international attention on the global fight against terrorism must not lead to neglect of the stabilisation process in the Balkans.

Austria is highly committed to the international endeavours to stabilise the Balkans. The numerous Austrians involved there are engaged in reconstruction, and are also prominently represented in the process of political consolidation. In Kosovo alone some 600 Austrians are working as members of the KFOR multilateral peacekeeping force, the UNMIK police force, the EU monitoring teams, the OSCE etc. The appointment of Erhard Busek as Special Coordinator for the Stability Pact from 1 January 2002 is a further indication of Austria's commitment to the Balkans.

In Croatia the reforming government under Prime Minister Ivica Racan took decisive steps towards the swift implementation of economic, legal and administrative reforms. The EU acknowledged this success by signing a Stabilisation and Association Agreement in October. Austria was the first to ratify, in March 2002. Austria also supports Croatia's approach to the European integration structures. Relations between the two countries were very close in 2001, with a large number of exchange visits.

A continuing high level of commitment by the international community marked the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2001, the sixth year after the Dayton Accords.

In the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia after the change of government at federal level in 2000, when Vojislav Koštunica was elected President, the inauguration of the new government of the Republic of Serbia under Prime Minister Djindjic in January 2001 opened the way for comprehensive economic, social and political reforms which were strongly supported by the international community. The donors' conference in Brussels on 29 June in particular showed this support for the democratic and reform-oriented governments. According to European Commission statistics Austria takes fourth place among Yugoslavia's donor countries.

The new federal administration opened diplomatic relations with all the other countries of the region. The international community particularly welcomed the improvement in relations with Croatia after a joint declaration by the two presidents and diplomatic visits to Zagreb by President Koštunica and Foreign Minister Svilanovic. The extradition of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Miloševic to the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague on 28 June is seen as further proof that the new leadership in Belgrade is in principle determined to fulfil its international commitments and push through the necessary reforms.

In October 2001 Austrian Federal Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel visited Belgrade accompanied by a large business delegation with an interest in investment there. Agreements were signed on investment protection as well as on economic, agricultural, industrial, technical and technological cooperation.

At the beginning of 2001 the international community saw itself confronted with another Balkan crisis in Southern Serbia, when tensions between ethnic Albanian extremists and Serbian police threatened to escalate. Thanks to efficient cooperation between the EU and NATO, and to a constructive attitude on the part of the Yugoslav and Serbian authorities, the situation calmed down within a few months.

As early as December 2000 Austria had demanded a reduction of the demilitarised Ground Safety Zone that was established in 1999 along the border of Kosovo in order to prevent intrusion by Yugoslav forces. This demand was based on the recognition that Albanian extremists were able to pursue their destabilising activities unhindered within the zone. NATO agreed to this in March, and the deployment of Serbian and Yugoslav security forces in the zone was completed by May. The Covic Plan for solving the crisis in the municipalities of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja provides for the enhanced civil integration of the ethnic Albanian population, with multi-ethnic police, economic reconstruction, local self-administration, minority protection etc. Austria repeatedly urged Belgrade and the EU for the swift implementation of these measures.

The situation in the Yugoslav Republic of Montenegro was dominated by the search for a redefinition of the relationship between Podgorica and Belgrade. The parliamentary election on 22 April did not bring the expected clear victory for the advocates of independence led by President Milo Djukanovic. Eventually, a minority government was formed by Djukanovic's DPS and the Social Democrats with the support of the Liberal Alliance (LSCG), which stands uncompromisingly for Montenegro's independence.

The constitutional positions were thus polarised: Federal President Koštunica stands for "a state consisting of two units" (Serbia and Montenegro), whereas Montenegrin President Djukanovic saw the solution as "two independent and internationally recognised states within a union". The official line of the EU has been "a democratic Montenegro within a democratic Federal Republic of Yugoslavia". The dialogue between Podgorica and Belgrade was broken off in October, but resumed in December on the initiative of EU High Representative Javier Solana, initially on topics like security, economics and trade, and social and monetary policies.

In the province of Kosovo, the international community, headed by the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), continued its endeavours to ensure the peaceful coexistence of the various ethnic groups, to enhance security, create basic administrative structures, and build an awareness of the rules of democracy and civil society. The Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self-Government, published on 15 May, regulates the establishment of provisional institutions of self-government in Kosovo. It was followed by elections on November 17. The Kosovo Serbs were eventually persuaded to participate too. The LDK party of moderate Albanian leader Ibrahim Rugova came out on top with 45.65% of the vote, followed by Hashim Thaci's PDK with 25.7%. The Serb Coalition (Koalicija Povratak) attained 11.34% and the AAK 7.83%. Since no group succeeded in gaining an absolute majority, the election of a president by the Kosovo Assembly and the subsequent formation of a government will demand a degree of compromise that will be the first test of the democratic will of Kosovo's elected representatives.

Albania's reform course continued in 2001 in the areas of the economy, democracy and the rule of law. Austria therefore strongly advocated within the EU that this progress should be recognised by stepping up the integration of Albania within the European structures. There are, however, still deficits like weak state institutions and the extreme polarisation of the political parties, which could potentially hamper the continuing reform process and an intensification of relations with the EU. The parliamentary elections on June 24 and July 8, which international observers reported as having been conducted on the whole in accordance with international standards, were an important step towards democratisation. During the Macedonian crisis the government in Tirana kept its distance from the ethnic Albanian extremists and condemned their activities. Austrian Minister for Foreign Affairs Benita Ferrero-Waldner, in view of Albania's support for the EU position, campaigned for an early start to negotiations on a Stabilisation and Association Agreement.

Developments in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in 2001 presented a serious challenge to the international community's crisis management capacity, especially that of the EU. The first clashes between the Slavic Macedonian majority and the ethnic Albanian group in February escalated into a full-scale rebellion, with up to 20 per cent of the country under the control of Albanian extremists. The international peacemaking process, under EU leadership with a NATO presence, culminated in the conclusion of the Framework Agreement on 13 August and moves to bring Macedonia more closely to the European integration structures, in particular by means of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement concluded in 2000 between the EU and Macedonia. The emergency coalition government of all parties broke up in November after it had introduced a constitutional change for the benefit of the Albanian ethnic group. Austria, acting on behalf of Belgium as local EU presidency in Skopje from July to December 2001, supported the efforts by the EU, NATO, OSCE and the ethnic groups to find a solution to the crisis. In this capacity Austria stressed the need for functioning coordination between all of the participants in the peace process, and in particular the necessity of efficiently securing the border between Macedonia and Yugoslavia/Kosovo by KFOR troops in order to prevent intrusions by ethnic Albanian combatants, supplies of weapons and logistical support.

In talks with Kosovo Albanian politicians, Austria repeatedly called on them to take steps to stop deliveries of supplies from Kosovo to the ethnic Albanian combatants in neighbouring Macedonia, and appealed to them to condemn the use of violence in Kosovo and in Macedonia in unmistakable terms. Austrian Minister for Foreign Affairs Benita Ferrero-Waldner impressed on Macedonian government politicians on numerous occasions that only a political solution could bring the country lasting peace and stability.

The Balkans and the European Union

The primary goal of Austrian foreign policy is to make the Balkan crisis zone into a zone of stability, and for this reason plays a vigorous role in the EU's efforts to support the democratically elected reform-oriented elements in the Western Balkans. It is Austria's view, and that of her EU partners, that the prospect of integration into the European mainstream in the longer term is fundamentally important for the maintenance of lasting peace in the region and provides an incentive to pursue the reform programmes at national level. The highest stage of this process is presently the Stabilisation and Association Agreements (SAA) - treaties tailored to the circumstances of each country which allow the EU to help prioritise reforms and to monitor their implementation. Croatia and Macedonia have already signed such agreements with the EU, and at the end of 2001 these were at the stage of ratification.

Austria continued to play a very active role throughout 2001 in the EU endeavours to resolve the Balkan problems. Austria's experience and know-how in the Balkans is highly regarded by her EU partners, and is followed with considerable interest. Vienna was a regular meeting place for politicians from the Balkan countries. In March the foreign ministers of Yugoslavia and Albania met in Vienna and reopened diplomatic relations, which had been broken off in early 1999 over the Kosovo crisis. In June the conclusion of negotiations and signing of the Agreement on Succession Issues of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia took place in Vienna. This important treaty had been prepared by UN High Representative Wolfgang Petritsch with the logistical support of the Austrian Federal Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the OSCE. It marks a fresh beginning that could lead to an era of peaceful coexistence for the peoples of the former state of Yugoslavia.