Publication

The Western Balkans may have drawn attention at the 2016 NATO Warsaw Summit. Indeed, Serbia, Kosovo and Montenegro even received specific mention in the Summit’s Communiqué. Nevertheless, the Summit promoted a continuance of current NATO activity in the region, implying that the status quo – referring to the small NATO force in Kosovo, and the several liaison offices who monitor partnership activity and the Membership Action Plan application in the other Western Balkans states – is sufficient. However, this paper argues that existing efforts are too small and disjointed to meet the growing challenges in the region, especially given NATO’s obligation to conflict prevention following its interventions in 1996 and 1999.