AAB2024
International Business Business, Economics & Management (General) Emergency Management Middle Eastern & Islamic Studies Diplomacy & International Relations International Law Interdisciplinary Studies (General) Globalization
International (online) conference
Security, peace, and sustainable development in a troubled world
Pristina: 12.09.2024
Keynote Speakers:
Prof. Dr. Florian Bieber (TBC)
Prof. Dr. Ritsa Panagiotou (TBC)
Organizers:
Faculty of Public Administration and Faculty of Law, AAB College, Pristina, Kosovo
in partnership with:
University of Southeast Europe - North Macedonia
Šiauliai State University of Applied Sciences - Lithuania
University of Applied Sciences - Lithuania
Masaryk University-Czech Republic
Faculty of Law, University of Tirana
Sakarya University-Turkey
Russia's aggression in Ukraine, in addition to bringing war back to Europe, has once again highlighted the impotence of UN peacekeeping and raised fear and uncertainty among Ukraine's neighboring countries, some of which are NATO members. This aggression has also demonstrated that Europe no longer fears the "Red Army," but rather the Russian nuclear threat. In addition to the violation of international law, with Russia's occupation of significant parts of a sovereign state's territory, the Russian aggression against Ukraine should be considered one of the most recent and relevant examples of the far-reaching effects of armed conflicts on global economies and financial markets (Pisera et al., 2024). Due to the Russian military actions, Western Europe imposed sanctions. However, these sanctions revealed the West's unpreparedness in securing energy resources, especially gas. The Visegrad countries (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia), deeply dependent on Russian energy, reassessed their geopolitical and energy positions (Zuk et al., 2023). Meanwhile, Germany, which had enjoyed Russian energy benefits for decades, found itself facing a situation widely perceived as a "Zeitenwende," a significant moment of distrust towards German foreign policy and security concerning Russia (Bunde, 2022).
The administrations of European countries have played an important role in coping with the crisis caused by Russian aggression. They have been essential in implementing economic sanctions and coordinating joint responses with international partners. The Israel-Gaza war, on the other hand, has affected the conscience of students in Europe and the USA. Meanwhile, Israel is challenging the calls and decisions of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which demands the arrest of the leader of Hamas and the Prime Minister of Israel, as well as the arrest of Putin for crimes in Ukraine. Several European countries have recognized the state of Palestine, while the challenge of international justice remains concerning when those accused of crimes will be able to appear before international justice courts.
Meanwhile, the Balkan region in Europe remains troubled, with authoritarian leader Dodik threatening the Dayton Peace Agreement and Serbia reluctant to reach an agreement with Kosovo. The United Nations General Assembly has approved a resolution declaring July 11 as the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Genocide in Srebrenica, thus recognizing the crimes committed by Serbs in Bosnia. Furthermore, authoritarianism is on the rise in the Western Balkans (Bieber, 2020), while Moscow continues to vie for influence in the region (Panagiotou, 2021). Serbia, the sole country in the region yet to impose sanctions on Russia for its aggression against Ukraine, has strengthened its strategic ties with Moscow. According to the Russian Council on International Affairs, the main principles of Russian foreign policy are to prevent as much as possible the expansion of NATO in the Balkans, keep the region as a bargaining chip for negotiations with Brussels, and maintain the notion of Slavic brotherhood and religious unity (Entina & Pivovarenko, 2019; Panagiotou, 2021).
The disputes in the Balkans remain unresolved. Kosovo and Serbia continue fruitless negotiations, while North Macedonia remains stagnant due to internal identity tensions concerning Bulgaria. The government and the new president of North Macedonia, emerging from the last elections, have declaratively challenged the agreements with Greece and expressed rigidity regarding the conclusion of the dispute with Bulgaria in the EU rapprochement process.
Kosovo, which is still not recognized by all EU countries, now has visa-free travel but remains far from EU integration, partly due to Serbian obstacles.
Therefore, the purpose of this conference is to bring together researchers, policymakers, and professionals from international relations, international law, economics, and related fields to analyze the challenges of security, justice, and economic sustainability in a troubled world.
In this respect, we invite those interested to submit an abstract addressing the above issues and the following topics, but not limited to them:
Scientific Committee
The organizing committee
Important dates:
Abstract submission deadline: July 15
Response to abstracts: July 20
Conference date: September 12, 2024
Participation: Free of charge
Method of presentation: In-person and online (Google Meet)
Book of Abstracts and Proceedings Book with ISBN