Garčević Interviewed on NATO Crisis Management in Europe
Ambassador Vesko Garčević, Professor of the Practice of International Relations at Boston University’s Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, was interviewed for a Defense News article in which he discusses how the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is struggling to address conflicts and crises in Europe, including the Balkans and Ukraine.
The article, titled “At arm’s length: NATO juggles conflicts from Ukraine to the Balkans,” explores the peculiar situation NATO finds itself in amid the Ukraine crisis and Russian destabilization efforts in the Balkans, specifically how to stay out of a conflict even though the outcomes are deemed critical for NATO’s goals in Europe. Garčević commented on Russia’s role in the Balkans and its close ties with Serbia, noting that Serbia saw Russia stake a claim to a “greater Russia” by invading Ukraine. That has made Serbian leaders more confident about asserting their own claims to areas outside its borders inhabited by Serbs. As he argued, “Serbia has become more vocal about this, seeing a chance to copy Russia’s posture.”
As to the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Garčević predicted that Russia would likely stop short of encouraging an actual secession of the Republic of Srpska, a constituency of Bosnia and Herzegovina where Serbs constitute a majority, thus risking more bloodshed in the region. As he stated, “it’s a trump card they won’t use, but they will try to keep the country weak and keep NATO busy. It’s like in the Caucasus and Moldova. Russia likes frozen conflicts.”
The full article can be read on Defense News‘ website.
During his diplomatic career, Ambassador Vesko Garčević dealt with issues pertinent to European security and NATO for almost 14 years. In 2004, he was posted in Vienna to serve as Ambassador to Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He had been Montenegro’s Ambassador to NATO from 2010 until 2014 and served as Montenegro’s National Coordinator for NATO from 2015 until he joined the faculty at the Pardee School. Learn more about Ambassador Garčević on his faculty profile.