The Stability Pact and Balkan Integration

Regional integration in Western Europe and other parts of the world has been studied since the 1950s. However, scholars have focused more on the role of endogenous than exogenous factors, neglecting the role and influence of exogenous factors on the initiation and success of the integration process. Can regional integration succeed when it is initiated and guided by international actors rather than by the states within the region? This book examines the role of exogenous factors in Balkan integration. It argues that the role of the EU and the US is critical for integration in the Balkans. The Stability Pact, initiated by the US and the EU, reflects the long-term interests of the Balkan states, as it will lead them to faster integration with the EU. But its success depends more on the role of the EU and US rather than the Balkan states. In exploring the conditions that accompany the implementation of the Stability Pact this book highlights the circumstances that make the role of international actors more important to the Stability Pact and Balkan integration than the role of the Balkan states themselves.