NATIONS IN CONFLICT
Spring 2020 Session 8: The Balkan Wars
Maya Hadar, PhD
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§ Introduction
§ The Balkans Before Yugoslavia
§ Historical Background
§ The Treaty of Berlin (1878)
§ 19th Century Nationalism
§ The Balkan Wars (1912-1913)
§ The Balkans in the 1920s’
§ Yugoslavia: Ethnic Relations in a
Centralised State
§ Yugoslavia During WW2
§ Yugoslavia 2.0
§ Josip Broz Tito
§ The Collapse of Yugoslavia
§ Increasing Tensions
§ Separation of Ethnic Groups
§ Yugoslavia 3.0
§ Bosnia Herzegovina
§ The Kosovo Conflict
§ Contemporary Developments
§ Analysis, Conclusions
On The Agenda For Today
The Balkans: Introduction
§ ‘Balkans’- ‘mountains’ in Turkish
§ No universal agreement on the
regions’ components
§ Varied Definitions: Cultural,
historical, geographical
§ Ethnic Diversity
The Balkan Peninsula < 1878
Historical Background =>
§ Late 14th centaury: The Ottoman Turks
invaded the region
§ Turkish rule lasted for 500 years
§ Conversions to Islam
§ Late 17th century: The AustroHungarian
empire grew stronger
Historical Background =>
§ Renewed Hapsburg-Ottoman fighting
§ The Austrian ‘Militärgrenze’ (Military
Frontier)
§ Failed Serbian uprising:
§ Serbian uprisings (1804-1813), revolt
seeking self determination after over
300 years under Ottoman rule
Austro-Turkish War (1788–1791)
The Balkan Peninsula < 1878
§ The ethnic composition of the Balkans changed throughout the 18th
century
§ Steady decline of the Ottoman Empire
§ Two major redefinition of political boundaries in the Balkans:
§ The Treaty of San Stefano (March 1878)
§ The Treaty of Berlin (June 1878)
The Balkan Peninsula < 1878
The Treaty of Berlin (1878)
§ Bulgaria was split to three: Bulgaria, Eastern Rumelia, Macedonia (Ottoman)
§ Romania- independent
§ Bosnia and Herzegovina occupied
by Austria-Hungary
§ Serbia and Montenegro lost
territories and became isolated
from each other
§ No consideration of the aspirations of the Balkan peoples themselves
The Balkan Peninsula < 1878
Forming Nation States
19th century Nationalism in the Balkans =>
§ The creation of nation-states on former Ottoman territory
§ Occurred when the region’s Christian population induced foreign
intervention to secure its separation from Ottoman power
§ While each nation evolved in a unique way, two common characteristics
were:
§ The formation of national movements (mostly in an armed struggle
againt a ruler/foreign expansionist nationalism)
§ Dominant external factors
Forming Nation States
19th century Nationalism in the Balkans =>
§ Independent states: Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro
§ Bulgaria united with Eastern Rumelia (1885), fully independent in 1908
§ Slovenia, Croatia, BosniaHerzegovina
ruled by Austria-
Hungary
§ Beginning of the 20th century: The
Ottoman Empire was crumbling
§ Nationalism wave in the Balkans
The Balkans Before WWI
The Balkan Wars (1912 - 1913) =>
§ The First Balkan War (1912) fought between the
members of the Balkan League and the Ottoman
Empire
§ Balkan Victory
§ Ottoman Empire lost Macedonia and Albania
§ Albania became independent, Macedonia was
divided among the Balkan allies
The Balkans Before WWI
The Balkan Wars (1912 - 1913) =>
§ The Second Balkan War (1913),
fought between Serbia, Greece,
Romania and Bulgaria over
Macedonia
§ Bulgaria lost
§ Greece and Serbia divided most
of Macedonia between themselves
§ 28 June 1914: Franz Ferdinand assassinated by
a Bosnian Serb Yugoslav nationalist => WWI
The Balkans: 1920’s
§ 1918 => End of WWI, Austria-Hungary and Russian Empire collapsed
§ The fate of their Balkan territories was decided at the Paris Peace Conference
(1919-1920): Formation of Yugoslavia
§ Ethnic kaleidoscope: Settlements did not completely follow ethnic lines of
division, butn
Impossible task to begin with
n Larger states would be more economically viable than smaller, more
ethnically homogeneous ones
n Larger states would be more effective barriers against Russian + Hungarian
bolshevism
Yugoslavia
§ 45% of the population + 40% of the territory of its predecessor
§ New name: Serbia and Montenegro
§ Land of the South Slavs
1. The ‘Kingdom of Yugoslavia’ (1929-WW2)
2. Postwar Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
(Yugoslavia 2.0)
§ Serbia & Montenegro, Bosnia &
Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia, Slovenia
3. Yugoslavia 3.0 (1992-2003/6)
Yugoslavia 1.0
§ Created in the Paris Peace Conference, post WWI
§ The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and
Slovenes comprised the former kingdoms of
Serbia and Montenegro (including Serbian-held
Macedonia), Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina
§ Unitary, highly centralized, Serb dominated state
§ Turned into a royal dictatorship named ‘Yugoslavia’ in 1929
§ Deep regional disparities in standard of living
§ Ended with the outbreak of WWII (1941)
Yugoslavia: Ethnic Groups
§ Religious Diversity:
§ Serbian Orthodox Church
§ Croatian Catholic Church
§ Islam + Heretical tradtion in Bosnia and
Herzegovina
§ Ethnic groups were dissatisfied with their
status in the new state
§ Opposed the domination of one ethnic
group and called for greater national &
political rights Ethnic Groups in Yugoslavia
Slovene/Catholic 91%
Croat/Catholic 3%
Serb/E Ortho 2%
Croat/Catholic 78%
Serb/E Ortho 12%
Serb/ E Ortho 63%
Montenegrin/ E Ortho 6%
Albanian/Muslim 14%
Hungarian/Catholic 4%
Muslims (43.7%)
Croats/Catholic (17.3%)
Serbs/E Ortho (31.4 %)
66% Macedonian/E Ortho
23% Albanian/Muslim
2% Serb/E Ortho
4% Turk/Muslim
Patterns of Ethnic Settlement
Facilitated the Conflict and
Break-up
Yugoslavia 1.0
§ Not only that people were divided by religion and had distinct national
aspiration,
§ Discrepant Visions for Yugoslavia =>
§ Fascists: Strong central government headed by a dictator
§ Communists: Goods + services should be owned & distributed among the
people
§ Economic Problems due to diverse origins
Yugoslavia’s Agony in the Second World War =>
§ April 1941: German & Italian armies conquered
Yugoslavia
§ Croatia: Independent puppet state (included Bosnia)
§ Serbia: Controlled by Germans
§ Montenegro: Occupied by Italy
§ Kosovo: Occupied by Albanian and Italian forces
§ Bulgarians invaded Macedonia
§ Communist partisan + Serb nationalist groups fought the Germans and
each other
Yugoslavia During WWII
§ The Chetnik (Yugoslav Army in the
Homeland/ Ravna Gora Movement) was a
Yugoslav royalist & Serbian
nationalist movement in
occupied Yugoslavia
§ Led by Draža Mihailović
§ Fought the Germans, but more often the
Ustasha, the Communists + Bosnian
Muslims
Yugoslavia During WWII
§ Croatian fascists in the Ustasha Party collaborated with the
Germans, ethnic cleansing of Serbs in Croatia
Yugoslavia 2.0
§ Created in 1946 after the country was liberated
from German rule by communists
§ A federation of six republics: Croatia,
Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Macedonia
§ Over twenty ethnic groups
§ Centralized communist state => Loosely
coordinated union
§ Good relations with the west + economic stability
Josip Broz Tito (1892-1980)
§ First Yugoslavian President
§ The Communist kept ethnic
hatreds in Yugoslavia from
boiling over into hostilities
§ Propagated a “Yugoslav”
identity (failed)
§ Failed to reduce prosperity gap
between north & south
§ 1974: Granted autonomy to
Vojvodina & Kosovo
Increasing Tensions
§ Tito’s death gave rise to ethnic tensions
§ 1987: Milosevic, head of the Serb
Communist Party, establishes a Serbian
nationalist movement
§ The collapse of the Soviet Union + its
satellite regimes weakened the forces that
held modern Balkans together
§ Dominant force in the Balkans: Communism
=> Nationalism
§ 1990-1991 => Surge in violence by Serbs
against non-Serbs in mixed areas of Croatia
§ Milosevic: 'Yugoslavia does not exist anymore’
§ 1991 => Yugoslavs army begins ethnic
cleansing of non-Serbs from “Greater Serbia”
§ Sham election in Croatia, union with Serbia
§ Independence referendum in Croatia
§ June 1991=> Slovenia, Croatia exited the
federation
Separation of Ethnic Groups
Red: Serb occupied and ethnically cleansed
of non-Serbs areas of Croatia 1991 – 1995
Yugoslavia 3.0
§ Serbia tried to dominant the region
§ Croatian War of Independence (1991-5)
§ Muslim/Croat coalition vs. Serb forces (1992-3)
§ Muslim-Croat + intra-Muslim wars (1993-4)
§ Muslim/Croat, Muslim/Croat/NATO joint
offensive vs. Serb forces (March-October 1995)
§ 1992 => A new federation of Serbia and
Montenegro (during the Yugoslavian civil war,
Yugoslavia 3.0)
§ Bosnia & Herzegovina + Macedonia declare independence, fighting spread
Separation of Ethnic Groups
Response of the International Community =>
§ In 1992, UN brokered ceasefire between Serbs and Croats in Croatia
§ The United Nations Protection
Force (UNPROFOR) is created to
monitor the Serb-Croat cease-fire
§ First UN peacekeeping force in Croatia
and in Bosnia and Herzegovina during
the Yugoslav Wars
Bosnia Herzegovina
§ Multi-ethnic Society: Muslims, Serbs, Croats
§ Bosnian Serbs seek autonomy + expansionism
§ 1992: Bosnia Herzegovina breaks out of Yugoslavia
§ Bosnian Serb attack,
Muslims forced to flee
§ 1993: Serb forces control around 70% of Bosnia
§ Ethnic Cleansing of Muslims & Croats by Bosnian
Serbs
Areas of control in Bosnia
Herzegovina, September 1994
§ Mainly controlled by the Bosnian
Serb Army and the Army of
Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
§ Croats military forces were also
present
Bosnia Herzegovina
The Srebrenica Massacre
§ June 1995 => The Srebrenica
Massacre/genocide
§ Eastern Bosnia conquered by Bosnian
Serb & Serbian army forces
§ Was supposed to be a safe zone
§ Killing of over 7,000 Bosniak (Bosnian
Muslims) killed in/around Srebrenica,
perpetrated by the Bosnian Serb Army
§ Mass expulsion of Bosniak civilians
Separation of Ethnic Groups
Response of the International Community =>
§ Mass killings, concentrations camps, destruction of
mosques reported worldwide
§ UN placed economic sanctions on Serbia,
didn’t send a fighting force
§ Agreement to stop attacking Muslims was broken
when Serbs attacked “safe havens” in Bosnia
§ 1995: Bosnian Serbs reject peace proposals
=> months of NATO air strike + ground attack
à Dayton Agreement
The Dayton Agreement
§ November 1995 => Dayton agreement
(Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia)
§ Ending the war in Bosnia
§ Preserved Bosnia as a single state,
made up of two parts: Bosniak-Croat
federation + Bosnian Serb Republic
§ Sarajevo: Undivided capital
§ A NATO-led peacekeeping force was
created to supervise implementing the
military aspects of the agreement
After Dayton AccordsBefore the War
The Kosovo Conflict (1998)
§ The Kosovo Liberation Army (supported by a majority
ethnic Albanians) started a rebellion against the Serbian
rule, seeking independence => Civil War
§ Forced expulsions of Albanian refugees by Serb
forces
§ International pressure on Serbian Milosevic to
end the escalating violence in the province failed
§ Major Serbian military offensive against the
Kosovo Liberation Army led to NATO’s
intervention
The Kosovo Conflict (1998)
§ Peace Accords (summer of 1999)
§ Union is maintained + greater autonomy
§ 2003: Renamed ‘Serbia and Montenegro’
Serbia and Montenegro, 2003
The Kosovo Conflict (1998)
§ 1999 => NATO air strikes against Serbia
(March- June)
§ Focused on military targets in Kosovo and
Serbia
§ Destroyed the defense ministry and the Chinese
embassy in Belgrade
§ US Marines and KFOR occupied Kosovo
§ By 2003, Serbia and Montenegro were all
that’s left from Yugoslavia
§ 2006 => Montenegro separated from
Serbia and gained independence
following a close referendum
§ 2008 => Kosovo declares its
independence
§ Only recognized by the countries in green
Contemporary Developments
Contemporary Developments
§ 2019: Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia => North Macedonia
§ The Prespa Agreement (2018)
Contemporary Developments
Analysis
§ The volatility of the 'Balkan Powder keg’ =>
§ Dispute over resources
§ Ancient hatred
§ Meddling by Great Powers
§ Terrain
§ Religious diversity
Analysis
§ What can account for the volatility of the 'Balkan Powder
keg’ ?
§ Ethnic Diversity => Ethno-nationalism => Identity
Politics
Conclusions
§ The Balkans: Arena of conflicting identities and clashing political goals
§ Two World Wars created + revised political borders irrespective to ethnic
population disparity
§ The communist state ‘kept the lid’ on the Balkan’s pressure cooker of
ethnicities
§ Post Cold War + collapse of communism
§ Division along ethnic lines (not religious, skin color, etc.), not only in the
Balkans
Conclusions
§ A series of various secessionist wars with different combatant groups
(state and non-state) were fought between 1991 and 2001
§ Former Yugoslavia is now
broken into seven
independent countries:
§ Bosnia Herzegovina,
Croatia, Kosovo,
Montenegro, North
Macedonia, Serbia,
Slovenia
Conclusions
§ Politicians tactically swapped communist rhetoric for ethno-nationalism as
a way to gain, maintain, and consolidate their power in a time of extreme
national and international upheaval
§ Serbian: Heroic past, portrayed Croats and Bosniaks as identity threats
§ Croatian: Feared Serbian domination and control
§ Contributing Economic Disparities
Next Session...44
§ The ‘Troubles’ in Northern Ireland
45
Questions? Feel free to email me =>
hadar@fss.muni.cz