THE EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE OF THE WESTERN BALKANS

The membership in the European Union represents for the Western Balkans a good motive to correct the existing shortcomings and to actively undertake the building of a better future. Western Balkan is a geopolitical term that refers to countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and new state Kosovo. The term Western Balkan, has been used for the first time in the beginning of 1990's and is often explained as Yugoslavia minus Slovenia plus Albania. Western Balkan countries are also in a political and economic context described as a "black hole" of Europe as a result of lacking cooperation with the rest of Europe and slow reform process toward modernization and democratization of their societies. Western Balkan countries occupy an area of 196,047 km2, with population of around 21 and a half million citizens. Western Balkan are still not members of EU, but some of them are candidates, they all are in the process of Stabilization and Association Agreement and they all share similar and turbulent history with a lot of struggles and bloody ethnic conflicts. That is why EU tends to spread the zone of stability and prosperity to this region too. Countries of Western Balkan have made significant progress in democratization, stabilization and neighborhood relations in comparison to a decade ago. Every country has established democratic institutions, and the leaders are promoting pro-European ideas. Croatia and Macedonia are officially candidates. Balkan countries still have significant problems which can slow down negotiations with European Union. Because of that, they are starting to look at the membership as a key which will solve all their problems, and bring prosperity to the countries.