Small-State Security in the Balkans
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The 110 million people who inhabit the important strategic East-West and Europe-Middle East crossroads that comprises the six Balkan states have been redoubling their efforts to overcome centuries of regional enmities. These states - Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Turkey and Yugoslavia - have sought to enhance their security through a variety of approaches including improved bilateral and multilateral regional relations and attempts to limit extra-regional constraints. But formidable problems and divisive influences complicate this quest. There is a lack of socio-economic compatibility among the six states that is rooted in the sharply contrasting domestic systems: MarxistLeninist, pluralistic-democratic and military-authoritarian. A variety of Christian sects and Islam lead a fragile coexistence in the area. Furthermore, the strategic importance of the region has led to heavy American and Soviet involvement and an extension of the East-West struggle to the Balkans. On the other hand, the constant concern of these small states with their external and internal security has often induced them to seek actively the protection of great powers and at the same time endeavour to safeguard their sovereignty. Such conflicting goals have been expressed in part by membership of competing military alliances or non-alignment. But these alliances have acted as conduits for Western and Soviet influences, as have Balkan-state membership of (or association with) the European Economic Community and the Soviet-dominated Council for Mutual Economic Assistance. These external influences interacting with domestic factors help determine the quality of regional security. Thus, even though this work concerns itself primarily with external security, it also deals with the impact of salient domestic factors such as nationalism, national minorities and succession, which in turn affect all aspects of security.
Dr Aurel Braun is Associate Professor of International Relations at the University of Toronto. Previously he taught at the University of Western Ontario (1977-80) and has held appointments at Queen's University, Kingston, and the Royal Military College, Kingston (1976-7). His publications include Romanian Foreign Policy since 1965: the Political and Military Limits of Autonomy and numerous articles on international relations. He received his doctorate in international relations from the London School of Economics in 1976.
SMALL-STATE SECURITY IN THE BALKANS Aurel Braun Associate Professor of International Relations University of Toronto
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© Aural Braun 1983 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1983 978-0-333-32172-0
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without permission First published 1983 by THE MACMILLAN PRESS LTD London snd Bssingstoke Compsnies snd representstives throughout the world
ISBN 978-1-349-06135-8
ISBN 978-1-349-06133-4 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-06133-4
To my wife JULIANNA
Contents
Acknowledgements
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1. SMALL STAT
