- Academic Article
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June 14, 2007
Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior
Abstract:
As NATO has moved from being a primarily military alliance to seeking more political roles, it has become pertinent to consider its impact on democratisation. At first glance, it might seem incongruent even to deliberate on the democracy promotion relevance of an essentially military organisation. But, NATO's successive enlargements have often hinged on the
fulfilment of democratic preconditions in aspirant members, while technical assistance provided under the Partnership for Peace (PfP) and other programmes has increasingly focused on the reform of civil-military relations. Assessment is consequently warranted of whether NATO has come to play any positive role in
encouraging democratisation across different regions, or whether its impact on political liberalisation has been either marginal or even negative. This paper argues that support for democracy has increasingly infused NATO policies, but that the organisation's role in democracy promotion is circumscribed by strategic considerations; most often an indirect side effect of
other aims; and most relevant to the niche area of defence reform....
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January 2, 2007
Journal on Ethnopolitics and Minority Issues in Europe
Abstract:
This article explores the difficult process that attended implementation of the Ohrid Agreement. It
explores the various resentments the terms of the agreement provoked amongst ethnic
Macedonians, in particular those dealing with xe2x80x98symbolic' issues, and examines reasons for their
rejection. These, the author argues, are related to the peculiarities of Macedonian national identity
as well as to the political dynamics in the country. On the one hand, it is argued, many politicians
fea#red for their patriotic credentials if they supported the agreement. On the other hand, large
parts of Macedonian society saw the very existence of the Macedonian nation under threat. They
regarded the state as the only protector of their contested national identity and therefore opposed
the agreement's goal to rewrite the constitution on purely civic terms with wide-ranging rights for
the minorities. For many Macedonians, this meant a severe loss of security. Despite this, the author
concludes that compromises could be found which allows for some optim ism for the future....
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November 14, 2006
United Nations // United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Abstract:
Over ten years after the signature of the Dayton Peace Agreement which ended the
wars in Bosnia and Croatia, steady progress has been made in finding durable
solutions for the hundreds of thousands of persons displaced by the wars in the former
Yugoslavia. By September 2004, returns to and within Bosnia and Herzegovina
reached the one million landmark figure. The number of persons in need of durabl#e
solutions (refugees and internally displaced) in the former Yugoslavia, which peaked
at over two million during the Bosnian crisis in 1992-95 and the Kosovo crisis in
1999, decreased to less than one million by the end of 2003 and to approximately
560,000 by mid-2006.
Yet, behind these encouraging trends, the picture is more nuanced. Most of the
refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) who found durable solutions were
those displaced by the wars in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia in the first half of
the 1990s. But the majority of the IDPs and refugees who fled the Kosovo province
of Serbia and Montenegro after the ousting of the Yugoslav army and the return of the
ethnic Albanian majority in mid 1999 are still in their places of displacement and the
situation of the minorities remaining in Kosovo is still precarious, as the analysis
below shows. From an institutional point of view, there is still some "unfinished
business"1 in the Western Balkans: in June 2006 Montenegro declared independence
and was admitted to the UN, spelling the end of the State Union of Serbia and
Montenegro, a loose confederation that replaced the remnants of the Federal Republic
of Yugoslavia. The final status of the Kosovo province of Serbia is also being
discussed, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1244.
As result of this situation, UNHCR's operations in the Western Balkans are centred
on two themes: "Post-Dayton" refugees and IDPs (from the wars in Croatia and
Bosnia) and refugees and IDPs from Kosovo. A third theme, beyond the scope of this
paper, is the development of asylum legislation and procedures in accordance with
international standards, in line with UNHCR's traditional mandate....
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July 4, 2006
European Policy Centre
Abstract:
Security Sector Reform (SSR)
is a specific peace-building
instrument which is part of
a much wider process of
transformation and stabilisation.
It is crucial for the authorities in
post-conflict societies to reform
their military (and paramilitary),
police, intelligence and border
control forces, customs and
judiciary to bring about lasting
change. Without substantial
reforms in these areas, it is almost
impossible to achieve sustainable
peace, democracy and development.
While this is true for many
war-torn communities and states,
it is particularly important for the
countries of the Western Balkans,
plagued as they are by the legacy
of wars, strained inter-ethnic
relations, unresolved status
issues, thriving criminal activities,
corrupt bureaucracies and high
unemployment rates....
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January 11, 2006
Anthropology of East Europe Review
Abstract:
This paper is the fruit of a preliminary inquiry into the presence of Albanian refugee women in Southern Italy. The research is based on participant-observation and interviews with Albanian couples the adjacent regions of Apulia and Basilicata. While it is impossible to offer a precise quantification of the Albanian presence, we recall that in 1991 over 40,000 refugees landed in Italy - some remaining more or less legally, others deported - and even today, clandestine landings continue on an almost daily basis. The two research sites were directly involved in the "crisis" of 1991, and while the refugees were "distributed" throughout Italy, the two regions presently host Albanians numbering in the thousands....
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- Bulletin
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June 2, 2011
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Crisis Watch summarises briefly developments during the previous month in some 70 situations of current or potential conflict, listed alphabetically by region, providing references and links to more detailed information sources (all references mentioned are hyperlinked in the electronic version of this bulletin); assesses whether the overall situation in each case has, during the previous month, significantly deteriorated, significantly improved, or on balance remained more or less unchanged; alerts readers to situations where, in the coming month, there is a particular risk of new or significantly escalated conflict, or a particular conflict resolution opportunity (noting that in some instances there may in fact be both); and summarises Crisis Group’s reports and briefing papers that have been published in the last month.
Amid mounting tensions between North and South Sudan over the disputed border area of Abyei, clashes broke out between the two sides at the beginning of the month. Northern Sudanese forces invaded Abyei on 20 May and asserted control in breach of existing peace agreements. Tens of thousands are reported to have fled south. The attacks threaten renewed conflict and weaken confidence between North and South as critical post-referendum arrangements remain unresolved.
Tensions also increased over military control and the presence of armed forces in the transitional areas of Blue Nile and South Kordofan, and CrisisWatch identifies a conflict risk alert for North Sudan for the coming month.
Violence escalated further in Yemen, where military forces loyal to President Saleh battled on several fronts, renewing fears that the continued political stalemate could erupt into civil war.
President Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria continued to use troops and tanks to violently suppress the ongoing revolt, with hundreds of protesters feared killed, thousands detained, and widespread reports of torture.
In Pakistan, the U.S. killing of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad at the beginning of the month again raised questions about the military's possible involvement with jihadist groups.
Local elections in Albania on 8 May proved even more troubled than anticipated as the race for the Tirana mayor's seat ended deep within the margin of error.
In Guatemala, the Mexican Los Zetas cartel killed and decapitated 27 farm workers in the northern Petén department.
In Serbia, war crimes fugitive Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb military leader accused of commanding the Srebrenica massacre and the siege of Sarajevo during the 1992-95 Bosnian war, was arrested after 16 years on the run. He was extradited to The Hague, where he will stand trial for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity....
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February 22, 2011
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Historic events in the Arab world gripped the world’s attention in January. In Tunisia weeks of escalating riots and demonstrations over dire economic conditions, corruption and government repression culminated in the ouster of President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali on 14 January. He was replaced by an interim government which announced the country’s first free elections since independence.
The direction of Tunisia’s transition, and its significance for the region, are not yet clear. But, assuming a successful transition, this could mark the first genuine popular revolt leading to a democratic government in the Arab world.
Inspired by the Tunisian uprising yet fuelled by their own long-standing grievances, hundreds of thousands took to the streets across Egypt towards the end of the month, protesting against authoritarian rule and poor living standards, and calling for President Hosni Mubarak to step down. Over 135 people were killed and more than 2,000 injured during the initial police response. The army was deployed at the end of the month to curb increasing chaos and looting, but vowed not to use force against the protesters. Events in Tunisia and Egypt have fuelled anti-regime protests elsewhere, including in Yemen, Jordan, Algeria and Sudan.
In the South of Sudan, preliminary results of the landmark self-determination referendum indicate 99 per cent of voters in favour of secession. The peaceful conduct of the vote drew praise from international observers and President Omar al-Bashir pledged to support an independent South.
Elsewhere in Sudan the situation deteriorated, however, as clashes between the government and Darfur rebel groups intensified. A deadly attack at Moscow’s main airport killing at least 35 people was blamed on a suicide bomber from the Caucasus. In Albania, three people were shot dead and over a hundred injured during clashes between police and opposition supporters during anti-government protests.
CrisisWatch again identifies a conflict risk alert for Côte d’Ivoire as former president Laurent Gbagbo refused for a second month to hand over power to the elected president Alassane Ouattara....
- Factsheet
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January 2, 2007
Council of Europe
Abstract:
The Ohrid Agreement, or the Ohrid Framework Agreement was the peace deal signed by the government of the Republic of Macedonia and Albanian representatives on August 13, 2001.
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June 7, 2006
Council of Europe
Abstract:
The United States of America finds that neither the classic instruments of criminal law and procedure, nor the framework of the laws of war (including respect for the Geneva Conventions) has been apt to address the terrorist threat. As a result it has introduced new legal concepts, such as "enemy combatant" and "rendition", which were previously unheard of in international law and stand contrary to the basic legal principles that prevail on our continent. Thus, across the world, the United States has progressively woven a clandestine "spider's web" of disappearances, secret detentions and unlawful inter-state transfers, often encompassing countries notorious for their use of torture. Hundreds of persons have become entrapped in this web, in some cases merely suspected of sympathising with a presumed terrorist organisation....
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May 26, 2006
United Nations // Electronic Mine Information Network
Abstract:
During the 1999 Kosovo conflict, northeast Albania was contaminated with mines and sub-munitions by forces of the Former Republic of Yugoslavia. In addition, some cluster strikes by forces of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) were launched against Yugoslav positions along the Albanian border, leaving unexploded ordnance (UXO) within Albania.
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November 16, 2005
Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Government of the United Kingdom
Abstract:
Country profile of Albania
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October 3, 2005
Globalsecurity.org
Abstract:
In late 1996 and early 1997, several failed get-rich-quick schemes robbed hundreds of thousands of Albanians of their life savings. When protestors demonstrated in the streets demanding restitution, riot police attacked them. The lack of an acceptable government solution to this problem exacerbated the situation, and the riots spread across the country. These riots, and the state of anarchy which they caused, are known as the Albanian civil war of 1997. At the end of the conflict, more than 360 people had been killed and power had transferred from the Democratic Party to the Socialist Party....
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- News
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January 19, 2007
Balkan Investigative Reporting Network
Abstract:
Albania's Democratic Party-led coalition and the opposition Socialists have reached a deal, opening the way to holding local elections and ending a standoff that had attracted growing concern in Europe. Under the agreement reached on January 12 between Prime Minister Sali Berisha and the Socialist leader and Mayor of Tirana, Edi Rama, local polls will go ahead next month. "The sides have understood the message that local elections are a good opportunity to prove Albania is making steps ahead in the development of democracy," said President Alfred Moisiu....
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December 14, 2006
Balkan Investigative Reporting Network
Abstract:
Albania has embarked on major initiatives to reveal the crimes committed by collaborators with the secret police in the communist era. Moves to open up the secret files on their activities and expose those who once allegedly spied on their fellow citizens follow precedents set by other states in the region, including Montenegro, Poland and Bulgaria. The aim is to find out who was involved in the spying activities that led to the jailing of 27,000 Albanians for political offences, the killing of 6,000 and the deportation of 12,500 families to concentration camps. ...
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November 2, 2006
Balkan Investigative Reporting Network
Abstract:
Tirana is increasing pressure on the international community to act fast and impose independence on Kosovo, if it seeks to improve long-term relations between Albanians and Serbs in the Balkans. Albania's prime minister, Sali Berisha, says independence for the majority-Albanian region offers the only route to normal relations between the two estranged nations. "Albania is convinced that full respect for the freedom and rights of the Kosovo Serbs and this country's independence are a precondition for peace and stability in the region," he told the Council of Europe's #Parliamentary Assembly on October 3....
- Organization
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February 21, 2008
Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces
Abstract:
The Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) is one of the world’s leading institutions in the areas of security sector reform (SSR) and security sector governance (SSG). DCAF provides in-country advisory support and practical assistance programmes, develops and promotes appropriate democratic norms at the international and national levels, advocates good practices and makes policy recommendations to ensure effective democratic governance of the security sector. DCAF's partners include governments, parliaments, civil society, international organisations and the range of security sector actors such as police, judiciary, intelligence agencies, border security services and the military....
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January 30, 2007
Abstract:
The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC) was launched on 08 May 2002 in Belgrade. SEESAC is a component of the Regional Implementation Plan on Combating the Proliferations of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) formulated and adopted by the Stability Pact in November 2001(Revised in 2006), with the aims of stopping the flow and availability of SALW in the region, consolidating achievements so far and supporting the socio-economic conditions for peace and development in South Eastern and Eastern Europe. The uncontrolled proliferation and illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons (SALW) is a serious problem in South Eastern and Eastern Europe. SALW proliferation has fuelled crime and insecurity, exacerbating conflict in the region and undermining post conflict peace-building. Problems related to SALW are likely to pose a serious constraint to economic and social development in South Eastern and Eastern Europe. Established in co-operation with the UNDP and housed in their offices in Belgrade, SEESAC worked to support the Stability Pact Regional Implementation Plan for an initial period of three years; the impact of the project has led to a further four-year extension until December 2008. Political and strategic guidance and indigenous support for SEESAC is provided by a Regional Steering Group (RSG), which is composed of representatives of the governments of the states concerned, the Stability Pact, UNDP and observers from institutions such as the European Union (EU), North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and civil society. The RSG meets twice yearly and has approved the 2006 SEESAC Strategy and a revision of the SEESAC mandate. SEESAC capability is now available to all stakeholders within the CIS and Caucasus region. SEESAC is now also available to provide technical advice and project development assistance for the disposal of heavy weapons (within available resources). SEESAC operates under the guidance of The Regional Steering Group for Small Arms and Light Weapons and the UN Resident Co-ordinator in Belgrade. SEESAC liaises directly with governments and civil society, providing technical input, information exchange, co-ordination and overview of current and future efforts and fund-raising assistance for specific SALW projects. SEESAC's small team is in constant communication with all the governments involved and with the relevant international organisations, non-governmental organisations and bi-lateral donors. SEESAC's regional activities include sensitising governments and civil society on small arms issues, formulating national strategies for SALW control and incorporating small arms issues into UNDP development planning....
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October 17, 2006
Abstract:
The Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation supports women in regions affected by war and armed conflicts. This support is needed not only during the heat of battle but also in the difficult work of building peace. The Foundation is active in the Balkans, the Middle East and the Caucasus and is involved on site to support women's organisations working to strengthen women's psychological and physical health, enhance their self-esteem and ability to participate as a force in the building of a democratic society.
Kvinna till Kvinna Foundations is convinced that sustainable peace can only be built by people living in the areas concerned. This is why the foundation always cooperates with local women's organisations that work without consideration of ethnic, national or religious boundaries. They generate projects themselves on the basis of the needs in their society. The role of Kvinna till Kvinna is to provide financial support, assistance and advice in the development of these organisations. In Sweden, the Foundation talks about the effects of war and the important role of women in the work of constructing new, democratic societies. In 2002, the Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation was awarded The Right Livelihood Award....
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February 17, 2005
Abstract:
The Albanian Center for Human Rights (ACHR) was established in March 1992 as an independent non-governmental organisation that is dedicated to promoting knowledge and education of human rights institutions, standards and procedures in the process of developing a stable civil society.
- Report
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June 21, 2011
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
The big-picture issues at the crossroads of peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peacebuilding were taken up by the Security Council in September 2010, under the presidency of Turkey. Leading up to that discussion, Turkey held numerous bilateral consultations, and, with the support of IPI, organized an expert meeting on these issues in New York in May 2010 and an informal retreat in Istanbul for members of the Council in June 2010.
This publication is intended to document some of that process, and includes the Statement by the President of the Security Council, the outcome summary of the June retreat, and the set of papers that were presented there. Three of these papers draw lessons from the UN’s experiences in different areas of the world (Afghanistan, the Balkans, and the Great Lakes region of Africa), and one paper analyzes cross-cutting themes.
Table of Contents:
Introduction, Francesco Mancini
Meeting Note
Security Council Istanbul Retreat: At The Crossroads of Peacemaking, Peacekeeping, and Peacebuilding
Adam C. Smith and Vanessa Wyeth, Rapporteurs
Discussion Papers
Peacemaking In Afghanistan: A Role For The United Nations?
Gerard Russell
The Security Council And Peacekeeping In The Balkans, 1992-2010
Richard Gowan and Daniel Korski
The Great Lakes of Africa (Burundi, The Drc, And The LRA-Affected Areas)
François Grignon
Composite Paper on Cross-Cutting Themes
International Peace Institute
Annex
Statement by the President of the Security Council...
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March 18, 2011
United Nations Mine Action Service // United Nations Development Programme // United Nations Children’s Fund
Abstract:
The Portfolio of Mine Action Projects is a resource tool and reference document for donors, policy-makers, advocates, and national and international mine action implementers. The country and territory-specific proposals in the portfolio reflect strategic responses developed in the field to address all aspects of the problem of landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW). This country and territory-based approach aims to present as comprehensive a picture as possible of the full range of mine action needs in particular countries and thematic issues related to mine action. The portfolio ideally reflects projects developed by mine- and ERW-affected countries and territories based on their priorities and strategies; the approaches are endorsed by national authorities. The portfolio does not automatically entail full-scale direct mine action assistance by the United Nations, but is in essence a tool for collaborative resource mobilization, coordination and planning of mine action activities involving partners and stakeholders. A country portfolio coordinator (CPC) leads each country portfolio team and coordinates the submission of proposals to the portfolio’s headquarters team. While the majority of the CPCs are UN officials, this role is increasingly being assumed by national authorities. The country portfolio teams include representatives from national and local authorities, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the United Nations and the private sector. Locally based donor representatives are invited to attend preparation meetings. Each portfolio chapter contains a synopsis of the scope of the landmine and ERW problem, a description of how mine action is coordinated, and a snapshot of local mine action strategies. Many of the strategies complement or are integrated into broader development and humanitarian frameworks such as national development plans, the UN development assistance frameworks and national poverty reduction plans. This 14th edition of the annual Portfolio of Mine Action Projects features overviews and project outlines for 29 countries, territories or missions affected by landmines and explosive remnants of war. There are 238 projects in the 2011 portfolio. Africa accounts for the largest number: 92....
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November 8, 2010
Center for Strategic and International Studies // Hellenic Centre for European Studies
Abstract:
The West Balkan region consists of Albania and the former states of Yugoslavia (Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia/ FYROM, Montenegro, Serbia, and Kosovo). Since the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords in 1995 and the NATO air campaign against Yugoslavia in 1999, the countries of the Western Balkans have faced a new challenge of promoting human security. Human security was first defined by former Special Advisor to the United Nations Development Program Administrator, Dr. Mahbub ul Haq, as encompassing seven basic needs: economic security, food security, health security, environmental security, personal security, community security, and political security. Under the rubric of human security, this paper assesses the challenges of displacement, discrimination, poverty, health standards, and environmental protection.
The effects of the wars of the 1990s still linger in the Western Balkans, especially in the areas of statelessness, displaced persons, and returnees....
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November 24, 2008
University of Pittsburgh // Ford Institute for Human Security
Abstract:
Human security is emerging as a sophisticated and compelling strategy to address the extreme problems of children in contemporary wars. The child soldier is increasingly seen as an icon of ‘new’ wars – transformed from a young person into a weapon. Whether as members of local militias or as suicide bombers, child soldiers are children growing up among failed adults in failed communities. Some not only fail to learn to read or write, they also fail to learn the humanity they need to be successful neighbors and parents.
Turning children into weapons is an act of generational destruction. Failed adults are more likely to make failed neighbors and failed parents. The cycle can continue for generations. Thus the real costs of war cannot be tallied for years, for decades, for generations….
Child soldiers reveal the genocidal aspects of contemporary wars. Child soldiers are, explicitly or tacitly, direct attacks on the generational transitions of communities. The cruelty of new wars reveals major gaps in educational policy frameworks currently in use by the international community. Education policy today focuses thinking about education as a civil rights problem. This leads to concerns for access to the ‘provision’ of institutional services. Developed during the post World War II period, education was constructed as a neutral, technical process complete with generic experts who taught and generic students who learned. Their classrooms were ordered around literacy and numeracy. Their ends were national economic growth. Little attention was paid to security issues and their consequences, either shorter or longer term.
This approach to development, while admirable, is insufficiently compelling to drive today’s strategic operations in the brutal, even genocidal face of ‘cultural identity’ wars and their aftermath. Under these conditions, when civil societies are threatened to their generational core, traditional classrooms and curriculum are no longer sufficient. The problem is no longer one of civil rights. It has become a much larger problem of generational survival.
This paper suggests that the emerging human security frameworks, while still mired globally in failing narratives, may offer the best direction for future work. Emerging human security narratives focus on the protection of local populations, especially children. They require defense against the forced recruitment of child soldiers. These new narratives center on the protection of generational agency. They mobilize local and external communities to actively secure safe places for children to grow and develop as normally as possible.
How then should scholars and strategists examine the practical questions of deterrence? What appears to be working on the ground in new wars? Against the allure of muscular and violent warriors stands a small group of internationals working side by side with caring local parents and neighbors desperate to defend their children. Together they have constructed an emerging strategy of local community protection that places at its center, the protection of children’s agency in the face of those who seek its annihilation. This paper examines the problems of research and data collection under these conditions, turning to ‘fugitive literature’ and strategic desk reviews. It briefly surveys general, large-scale responses to recruitment deterrence in Bosnia, Albania, Ingushetia, Sierra Leone, Colombia and Panama. It concludes that while causal claims may not be advisable, scholars can at least begin to map the strategic intent of the institutions involved. Beyond that, more work is needed to map the political and cultural economies that either threaten or defend children....
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October 24, 2008
National Defence Academy and Bureau for Security Policy // PfP Consortium of Defence Academies and Security Studies Institutes
Abstract:
The origins of this article, and the book from which it derives, lie in
the largely unanticipated end of the Cold War in 1989-90, when I had
the good fortune to be a William C. Foster Fellow at the U.S. Arms
Control and Disarmament Agency (ACDA). This fellowship included
serving as a member of the U.S. Delegation to the Negotiations on
Confidence- and Security-Building Measures (CSBMs) within the
context of the (then) Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe
(CSCE), based in Vienna, Austria. The CSCE, now the OSCE, is the
world’s pre-eminent regional peace and security organization
comprising former enemies of the Cold War (NATO and Warsaw Pact)
and the neutral and nonaligned of Europe.
The end of the Cold War provided opportunities and challenges for
reshaping international peace and security into a “New World Order” in
which the former Cold War foes could collaborate on global problemsolving
to the benefit of all. Having become aware of the CSCE’s
contribution to ending the Cold War (see Leatherman, 2003) as part of
the experience of serving as a diplomat on the U.S. Delegation to the
CSBMs Negotiations, I was intrigued by the possibility that the CSCE
could play a useful role in realizing this goal of a “New World Order.”
Regrettably, the end of the Cold War also provided opportunities for
parts of Europe, particularly the Balkans, to descend into brutal
genocidal warfare....
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Albania 
