(Athens News)

 

DESPITE the remarkable progress in stabilising the western Balkans and positioning the region for Nato and European Union membership over the past decade, significant work remains to be done in order to fully develop the region as a component part of the Euro-Atlantic community. 

 

In order to move this process forward, think-tanks from the United States and Greece have brought together their respective expertise and resources, given that the two longstanding Nato allies share common objectives of political stabilisation, regional security, respect for human rights, economic development and international institutional integration for the entire Balkan region.

 

In this framework, a collaborative bilateral initiative by two key policy institutes in both countries, the US Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Hellenic Centre for European Studies (EKEM), in October 2009 established the US-Greece Task Force: Transforming the Balkans - Security, Political Stability and Economic Development. 

 

The project is co-chaired by Theodore Couloumbis (professor emeritus, University of Athens), and Janusz Bugajski (Lavrentiadis chair on southeast Europe, New European Democracy Programme, CSIS). 

 

The one-year project has already produced papers on key Balkan issues.

 

“The EKEM is operating under the auspices of the Greek foreign ministry, which is, naturally, interested in promoting Balkan cooperation,” Couloumbis told the Athens News.

 

“In the context of the US-Greek task force, we have already produced our first report that offers an overview of the structure and potential of Balkan transport networks, to be presented in Washington shortly. Another report that EKEM is currently preparing covers the Balkan energy sector.”

 

CSIS is separately working on the inter-related issues of organised crime, trafficking 

and security in the Balkans, Couloumbis added.