Balkan Studies Center's Blog

In the post-war period, the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina experienced several changes that came either as a result of the implementation of the decisions of the Constitutional Court of BiH (Appeal by Alija Izetbegović on the compatibility of the Constitution of the RS and the Constitution of the Federation with the Constitution of BiH in matters of the Constituent  people),  or  through the amending the same such as Amendment I to the BiH Constitution on the status of the Brčko District adopted in 2009). Although some authors claim that the BiH Constitution changed with the decisions of the High Representative in BiH, referring to the decisions of the High Representative regarding the transfer of competencies from entity to state level, it is important to point out that such decisions are not incorporated into the BiH Constitution, on the contrary, they are based on the existing provision of the Constitution BiH i.e. Article III, paragraph 5., states that: "Bosnia and Herzegovina shall assume competencies in those matters (...) necessary for the preservation of the sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence and international personality of Bosnia and Herzegovina in accordance with the division of responsibilities between the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Additional institutions may be established as necessary to carry out such responsibilities."

The new EU strategy is a credible EU plan for accession the Western Balkan (WB) countries to its community and expansion of its market and economic space, but also a plan to address certain EU security issues through resolving systemic problems of the WB. The WB countries are expected to carry out reforms on the model of Slovenia and Croatia, and eventually raise their economic and other standards and harmonize them with the standards of other EU member states. It should be kept in mind that the EU is primarily an economic community, while NATO membership, although not one of the conditions for accession, is implied for the EU member states and it basically ends the entire process of joining the elite Western world. Through EU and NATO memberships, the WB countries would gain access to the European economy and security, but their position, as well as the influence in the region would be significantly different, and this primarily applies to Serbia.

Eid Prayer in Albania’s capital Tirana, did not proceed as usual on September 1, 2017. The Muslim Community of Albania (MCA) held its mass communal prayer in the central Scanderbeg Square after which the prayer was vocally attacked by numerous Albanian politicians and journalists. This attack was sparked by the way in which the Muslim Community had “hidden” the statue of Scanderbeg during the Eid prayer by placing two large monitors between the statue and the worshippers.

Several days ago, the EU Strategy for the Western Balkans was presented in Strasbourg. It is aimed at establishing a common economic space and initiating economic development in the Balkans, and one of the goals is to better connect the Balkans region with the EU. It was stated that prior to the admission of new EU members, regional conflicts should be resolved, migration stopped, rule of law and stable democracy established and organized crime curbed. Issues related with border disputes and inefficient public administration are also very important, and the need for economic growth is certainly implied. In 2018, the EU promised to allocate around 1 billion euros for infrastructure projects and strengthening of educational capacities in the Balkans. IPA funds will also be increased from 2018 to 2020, as well as the monitoring of the spending of these funds. However, EU leaders will certainly have to bear a heavy burden because of the disapproval of EU member states that are opposed to the enlargement of the Union.