Southeast European Times

Experts say Balkans stability, prosperity depend on resolving remaining issues

May 7, 2006

Montenegro's peaceful split from its former state union with Serbia provides a positive example of how to solve issues without conflict, said participants at a recent conference in Sveti Stefan. Topics discussed included Kosovo's status and post-Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina.

By Antonela Arhin for Southeast European Times

Experts from Southeast Europe and eminent universities worldwide gathered on 17 June to discuss ways to overcome the consequences of the Balkan conflicts in the 1990s. The European Centre for Peace and Development (ECPD) chose Sveti Stefan in Montenegro to host the first session of its International Expert Group for National and Ethnic Reconciliation and Religious Tolerance in the Balkans.

Stability and development in the region depends on resolving the remaining issues, said the president of the Academic Council of ECPD, Japanese diplomat Takehiro Togo. If not addressed properly, they could prompt new problems, he said, pointing to the recent referendum in Montenegro as a positive example of how to resolve issues without conflict.

Topics discussed included the Kosovo status issue and post-Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina, with its complicated institutional framework. Participants stressed the importance of a peaceful and democratic solution in Kosovo for the Balkans as a whole. They agreed that facing the truth is a necessary precondition for overcoming divisions in the region.

Professor Slobodan Lang from the University of Zagreb said people from the former Yugoslavia gained "practical wisdom" through the difficult times that are now behind them.

The region has a responsibility not only to overcome challenges, he said, but to implement the lessons learned. Commenting on the current situation in Montenegro, Lang said it is important now to set concrete goals and achieve them, rather simply praising the republic's newly gained sovereignty.

Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic's foreign policy adviser, Milomir Mihaljevic, told participants that the new state plans to remain a good partner in the region and contribute to a better future. In May, Montenegro achieved a major milestone with the passage of the law on minority rights -- legislation that has been in the works since 2002.

The conference gathered a number of eminent experts, including the president of the World Peace Forum, Sir James R. Mancham -- who was the founding president of Seychelles -- Professor Jonathan Bradley of the University of West England, and Charles Ingrao of Purdue University.

The ECPD is an educational, scientific and research institution that works under the auspices of the UN and is headquartered in Belgrade. Its next international conference is scheduled for October.