Russian influence in the Western Balkans is expanding through various factors such as trust, economic factors, energy network and gas.
This was said in the discussion organized by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES), in which case the findings of the research related to the influence of Russia in the Western Balkans were published.
It was said there that the Russian aggression in Ukraine has caused challenges to be observed in the region and that for this reason NATO’s presence should be increased.
“It’s been almost two years since Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine and the challenges arising from this aggression continue and may also affect the Western Balkans,” said the moderator of this panel, Teuta Avdimetaj, professor at the American University in Kosovo, AUK (RIT).
Meanwhile, the findings of the research were presented by Jeta Loshaj, program manager at the FES Kosova foundation. Loshaj said that the impact of Russian aggression has affected the political order of Europe, the fields of economy, security, etc.
According to the report, if we talk about Albania, the relations between it and Russia are limited as a result of some changes over the years. However, unlike Albania, the relationship with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Russia has political, economic and cultural relations with the Republic of Serbia and its leader, Milorad Dodik.
As for the state of Kosovo, it is said that Russia has tried to exert its influence on the Serbian population in Kosovo through propaganda and iconography, mentioning the graffiti found in the northern part of Kosovo. Compared to other states in the region, Montenegro has the most complicated case due to Russia’s political interference.
Panel members Maksim Samorukov, Ditmir Bushati, former Minister of Foreign Affairs in Albania, Aleksandër Spasor, professor at the Faculty of Law in North Macedonia, discussed what factors Russia is using to influence the Region.
“When Russia intends to expand its influence, it uses different mechanisms, saying that it selects countries of interest to it, as it currently does in Ukraine, the problem that is currently growing is that space is being left for it,” said Aleksandër Spasor.
Meanwhile, Serbia is the country in the region where the Russian ideological and geopolitical base is located. The former chief diplomat of Albania, Ditmir Bushati, said that the Russian influence in the Western Balkans is expanding through various factors such as trust, economic factors, energy and gas network, etc…
Loshaj said that this issue deserves more attention from Europe and NATO, since even after the country’s independence, it is impossible to know what might happen.
Samorukov said that the Russian Orthodox Church tries to control the church in North Macedonia, so this is also important for the expansion of Russian influence in the Western Balkans.
At the conclusion of the discussion panel, it was said that NATO should provide more security in the region, mentioning also the membership of Finland, as a response to Russian aggression that there is no room for games.
