Balkanization, Americanization, or Europeanization: What is Going on with the Political Elites and Electoral Processes in the Countries of Southeast Europe?
https://doi.org/10.46272/2587-8476-2025-16-4-58-76
Abstract
The political development of the countries of South Eastern Europe after the collapse of the bipolar system of international relations is most often considered in academic literature as a derivative of the processes in the western part of the continent. After the launch of the European integration project in the Balkans, the relevance of this approach became even more obvious. However, this approach minimizes the impact of internal factors, including socio-political and value-based ones, as well as the role played by the rapidly changing international economic, political and legal environment. This article examines the internal political processes in the Balkans through the prism of the systemic consequences of the collapse of the socialist world, which still have an important impact on the development of the region. In addition, the study assesses how common EU factors are reflected in the Balkan environment. The research concludes that despite the obvious commonality and interconnectedness of European political processes in all subregions, the traditional explanations for the Balkans through the phenomena of Balkanization, Americanization and Europeanization are not exhaustive. However, it is in the Balkans that the public’s demand of new types of leaders and parties is most evident, due to growing disillusionment and, in some republics, a credibility gap between the government and society.
About the Author
E. G. Entina
National Research University Higher School of Economics; Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Federation
Competing Interests:
Russian Federation
Ekaterina G. Entina, PhD (Polit. Sci.), Director, Mediterranean Studies Centre, Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs; Head, Department of Black and Mediterranean Sea studies
17, Malaya Ordynka street, Moscow, 115184
11-3V, Mokhovaya street, Moscow, Russia, 125009
Competing Interests:
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.
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Review
For citations:
Entina E.G. Balkanization, Americanization, or Europeanization: What is Going on with the Political Elites and Electoral Processes in the Countries of Southeast Europe? Journal of International Analytics. 2025;16(4):58-76. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.46272/2587-8476-2025-16-4-58-76
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