The Balkans: While you were watching Egypt...

T. J. Skopje     The Economist

SHARP-EYED observers have noted that some of the protestors that brought down Egypt's president used the clenched-fist logo of  Otpor, the well-organised, foreign-financed civic resistance movement that helped topple Slobodan Milosevic in 2000. Parts of the Serbian press, notes Florian Bieber, an academic who works on Balkan affairs, have claimed that former Otpor activists helped train some of the opposition groups.
 

With the world's attention on the Arab world, the political instability gripping much of the western Balkans has largely been ignored. Yet so serious is the unrest here—including mass demonstrations in Belgrade, Tirana and Skopje—that one diplomat told me his country’s foreign ministry had asked him if he thought that Egypt-style revolution might sweep northwards into the Balkans. (His answer was an emphatic “no”.) Here is a round-up of recent developments: 

Turkey-Greece Dialogue Process

 Erhan TÜRBEDAR, PhD        TEPAV

Greek Prime Minister George A. Papandreou's speech at the Turkish Ambassadors Conference in Erzurum has triggered a new debate on Turkish-Greek relations once again. Although he gave reciprocal messages of friendship and peace with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Papandreou's statements have clearly shown that Greek approach towards problems between the two countries has absolutely not changed. Besides all that Papandreou's Erzurum visit is deemed important to keep rapprochement process between the two countries alive.

The both sides had vividly expressed their political will to develop mutual relations during Prime Minister Erdogan's Greece visit in May 2010. Moreover 21 agreements had been signed in the fields of tourism, energy, environment, trade and fight against illegal immigration. Hence Turkish-Greek relations have virtually entered a new era. A fresh and softening breeze has started to blow in Turkey-Greece relations. In fact Turkey is trying to take constructive steps to convert Mediterranean and Aegean into seas of peace. Greek Prime Minister Papandreou's statements have revealed that Athens is also aware that improving relations with Turkey is of Greek interest, too. However Papandreou's statement at the Ambassadors Conference in Erzurum saying that as long as occupation of Cyprus continues Turkey will never be able to become an EU member has pointed to the fact that a healthy level on Ankara-Athens dialogue line has not been reached yet.

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