The European Union’s slow but consistent expansion into the Western Balkans continues with integration serving as the connective tissue that is to ensure security in the region. This diploma thesis discusses the integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the European Union and the impact of this process on the country’s security. The theoretical part focuses on the relationship between security and integration while explaining the concept of Europeanization. Based on the presented interview, the name of the region – Western Balkans – is considered and further problematized. A brief overview of the accession negotiations between the Western Balkan countries and the European Union sheds some light on the growth of the former. This process is described in greater detail for Bosnia and Herzegovina for which also a short analysis is offered of the European Union’s presence in the country – first through international military operations followed by the police mission, and currently, the Union’s role in the unfinished reform of the local security sector. Based on the European Commission’s reports on enlargement policy, security issues are identified along with the already implemented measures and Commission’s further recommendations. The thesis highlights selected consequences of the system established in Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Yugoslav Wars, linking it with the country’s current institutional fragmentation and uncertainty of progress in the field of security.
|
