The EU and the Western Balkans: soft securitization of enlargement during the initial stage of the Russia-Ukraine War of 2022
JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY EUROPEAN STUDIES, cilt.35, ss.1-28, 2026 (SSCI, Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 35
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.1080/14782804.2026.2724062
- Dergi Adı: JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY EUROPEAN STUDIES
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Academic Search Ultimate (EBSCO), Business Source Ultimate (EBSCO), Humanities Source Ultimate (EBSCO), Scopus, Sociology Source Ultimate (EBSCO), Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), IBZ Online, Humanities Abstracts, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, Political Science Complete, Public Affairs Index, Social Sciences Abstracts, Political Science Abstract (IPSA), MLA International Bibliography
- Sayfa Sayıları: ss.1-28
- Hacettepe Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
When the Russian armed forces launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, many politicians in Europe were alerted to the possibility of a spill-over of the war to the Western Balkans. Since the outbreak of the Donbas War in 2014, European states have swiftly revised their long-standing policies towards Russia; most condemned Moscow and sent aid to Kyiv, while a few pursued neutrality. This paper examines the discourses of Western Balkan politicians concerning the EU’s enlargement policy during the early days of the war in Ukraine. It explores the differences and similarities in these discourses in order to answer how enlargement has regained prominence despite having been sidelined prior to the war. The research question inquires into how these early discourses securitized the future of the Western Balkans as well as its relations with the EU. The paper argues that the securitization process enhanced the salience of enlargement policy for both sides. However, soft securitization that aimed to coordinate the EU and the Western Balkans on their objectives and expectations from the accession process constrained both sides’ positions with respect to taking the necessary steps toward the rapid accession of Balkan states.