Principaled policies, inspirational leadership will unite Balkans

0 Comments | Insight on the News, March 27, 1995 | by Loucas Tsilas

When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, an era ended. The impact of this historic event had a special effect on the Balkans, a divided region within a divided continent.

The euphoria of newly found freedom was soon overtaken by a crisis unforeseen by the postwar European order. The breakup of Yugoslavia and the subsequent bloody conflicts between ethnic groups of the former federation would be a difficult test for the new, post-Cold War world order and for our moral consciences.

The fact that a crisis in the heart of Europe goes unresolved for so long is a reminder of the complexity of the problems involved. Indeed, ethnic, religious, historical and cultural factors are intertwined in a most intriguing power game that reflects the importance of a strategic region located in the soft underbelly of the European continent.

The Balkans traditionally have been an integrated region in regard to business and trade. This historically diverse area had a remarkable unity, illustrated by a number of inspired initiatives in the twenties and thirties that were unhappily disrupted by World War II and the ideological division of Europe during the Cold War.

Today, we face a prolonged conflict that risks further destabilization of an area of geostrategic importance for Southern Europe and the Middle East, due to its position at the crossroads between Europe, Asia and Africa. Yet, as the conflict continues, we in the region receive confusing signals from different countries and from the same country at different times. There seems to be no multilateral coordination on the basis of a long-term strategy. What we lack today in dealing effectively with the Balkan issue is a set of principles and values. Such principles would include:

* Respect for existing, internationally recognized frontiers. Borders that have been established after so many conflicts, negotiations and treaties should not be altered. However, frontiers should not divide, but unite, people in a common effort to develop the region.

* Solutions to the conflicts in the Balkans. These solutions should be politically negotiated and not be imposed through military intervention and should be acceptable to the constituencies that reside in the area. They should not produce victors and victims.

* Respect for the principles of democracy and human rights. Leaders who do not adhere to those principles cannot be partners in the solution of the Balkan problem.

Today, we are trying to tackle new issues with institutions, such as the United Nations and NATO, that are still operating largely according to the criteria of the past. We need, therefore, political leadership and imagination that will put the United Nations and its international machinery in sync with the times. Furthermore, NATO will have to proceed with a more flexible institutional arrangement that will transform the alliance into the effective peacemaking organization it is trying to become. Within the same framework, the enhancement of the scope and the authority of the Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe could offer the necessary institutional mechanism to form a climate of cooperation among all countries in the region.

Greece has consistently fought for exactly this course of action: a principled policy in the hands of an inspired international leadership. It is true that we have a genuine interest in putting our own backyard in order. After all, Greece is one of the countries most adversely affected by the economic fallout of this crisis. The war in the Balkans not only has deprived us of the shortest land routes to our trading partners in the European Union, but has cut us off from our traditional economic mainland.

As these lines are being drawn, Greek businesspeople, undeterred by the present instability in the Balkans, are heavily investing in neighboring countries, paving the way for future cooperation under more favorable circumstances. Greece is contributing, bilaterally and in the framework of the EU, to aid programs aimed at buttressing new Balkan democracies, either through humanitarian-aid channels or by accepting economic refugees.

Greece is the region's sole member of both the European Union and NATO. With its modern economy and its connections to the EU and Western technology, Greece thus is becoming a focal point for economic and even military cooperation, in the context of the Partnership for Peace.

It is exactly this unique role that virtually puts us on the same wavelength with U.S. policy in the Balkans; both our nations desire a region with democratic governments promoting free-market economies. In this context, we believe we have a mandate not only to contribute to a peaceful and lasting solution to the present crisis but, moreover, to face the greater challenge of consolidating peace.

We are confident that our policies will prove us to be a key factor in solving a problem that often has threatened to turn into our continent's worst nightmare.

Loucas Tsilas is the Greek ambassador to the United States.