Editorial
Balkans, Past and Future Published: October 10, 2010 Bosnia, Serbia and Kosovo have come a long way since the 1990s. Serbia is no longer a rogue aggressor. Bosnia is no longer a killing field. And Kosovo, once a terrorized province of Serbia, is now an independent state. Washington and, in particular, former President Bill Clinton deserve a large share of the credit. When Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visits all three states this week, she will need to press them to continue the reforms, and the diplomacy, that are essential to their transition to a democratic, prosperous peace. There is still an extraordinary amount of old business to resolve. President Boris Tadic of Serbia is eager for his country to join the European Union and has worked to lower regional tensions. This spring Belgrade finally accepted responsibility and apologized for the wartime Srebrenica massacre. But the government has yet to locate and hand over the military leader directly responsible for that crime, Gen. Ratko Mladic, for trial in The Hague, as Europe insists. Belgrade still refuses to recognize Kosovo’s independence, but has agreed to European Union-mediated talks. Mrs. Clinton should press both sides to engage seriously. Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian majority, whose rights Washington went to war to defend, must also do a better job of protecting its own ethnic Serb minority. Bosnia’s hugely complex political institutions, cobbled together at Dayton, are badly hobbling its progress. Fifteen years later, its two rival ministates (one predominantly Serb, the other mainly Muslim-Croat) with a three-person presidency can barely make decisions on essential issues. These include resettling refugees, resolving property disputes and deciding whether the national government or ministates should control former Yugoslav military buildings and equipment. In national elections this month, Muslims and Croats chose moderate, more nationally minded representatives. The Bosnian Serbs elected leaders who are still calling for secession. Mrs. Clinton must make clear to the Bosnian Serbs that partition means isolation, while cooperation will open opportunities to join the wider European economy. She should also press the case for reforming the Dayton arrangements to create a unified, functioning state. The chance for European Union membership is the best incentive for these three countries to move ahead. But recession and resurgent German nationalism have weakened the authority of E.U. institutions. The United States will have to stay strongly engaged to see things through. A version of this editorial appeared in print on October 11, 2010, on page A22 of the New York edition. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/11/opinion/11mon2.html?_r=1
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