Kosovo as Apple of Discord
Stability and Its Enemies
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
After Kosovo’s declaration of independence in February 2008, many observers feared an escalation of violence. When this did not immediately happen, relief was widespread. In the summer of 2011, however, militant protests and barricades in northern Kosovo, even attacks on NATO soldiers, served as an ungentle reminder that old ethno-national territorial issues are far from resolved. Nonetheless, given the difficult starting point, the international community in Kosovo has made considerable success in building a functioning state. A nationalist escalation in violence similar to that of the 1990s is not looming.
(Osteuropa 10/2011, pp. 95–106)