Newsletter 24/2012 - In focus
SEEING ITS FUTURE, THE REGION CAN DEAL WITH THE PRESENT, by Hido Biscevic, outgoing RCC Secretary General
Again,
as almost every turn of the year during my term at the helm of the RCC, we are
closing 2012 with mixed feelings and contradicting overviews. Successes of
regional cooperation and accomplishments in different areas are marred by
failures and stagnations. Economic and social progress is hampered by the
prolonged crisis effects, suffocating production, investment, trade.
Looking back, in terms of advancement of the region towards the European Union
(EU), 2012 indeed proved to be the most important and successful in the recent
period – in a single year, so many important steps were taken within the enlargements
strategy. Croatia completed
the accession negotiations and stands ready to become full EU Member in July
2013, Montenegro opened
negotiations, Serbia received
a candidate status, High Level Accession Dialogue was opened with authorities
in Skopje, Kosovo* received a positive feasibility study, visa
liberalization was put in place. In sum, the EU kept its commitments as much as
the aspirants delivered.
But, at the same time, there is an undercurrent distress across the region
regarding the dynamics of the enlargement; just as the EU’s “push and pull”
policy is sometimes used as an alibi for domestic agendas. In the first case,
the fear over the enlargement slowdown, against the background of unfinished
peace, is in fact pointing to the dangers of geo-strategic limbo full of
political uncertainties, dormant conflicts and unresolved issues. The fears are
justified – a prolonged slowdown or postponement of the enlargement might be a
repetition of Europe's historical mistakes with the Balkans, just as it might
invite a resurrection of the old-time power plays and trade-offs. And this, in
my mind, clearly remains the biggest challenge for the region and for Europe in
the period "after Croatia".
With the broader changes of Europe's agenda
and "political mood", it is a high noon for the region also to
exercise a strategic thinking, beyond petty politics – routine, denials and
lethargy might truly create a quarantine zone for a prolonged period of time,
with disturbing and harsh economic, social and political consequences. In
short, a lack of resolute and long-term visionary approach to the remaining
open issues in the region could only serve as an excuse to put off the
enlargement for indefinite timeline.
Thus, resolving the opened issues is a matter of a strategic choice for
political leadership in many countries. It may be politically useful
"survivalist tool" to balance on the rope of public or even populist
sentiments and idioms, but it may in the end be strategically too expensive. It
may be comforting for domestic audience to resort to any individual
interpretation of recent history and to allow for these "parallel
histories" to hamper reconciliation and uninterrupted cooperation, or to
indulge in confusing causes and consequences, but in the end there is no way
that such policies, from whichever capital they come and resurge from time to
time, may bring a long-term benefit to any country and society.
The region needs to see the future in order to deal with the present. The
region needs to prepare itself for the future EU instead of using the current
EU crisis as an excuse for rejecting transformation and resorting to
nationalism or populism.
Against these contradicting trends, when EU advancement is marred by some
strategic question marks, the fact that the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC)
has managed to keep the engine of regional cooperation running, is a success in
itself. Moreover, the fact that the RCC managed to abide by its ground rule of
all-inclusiveness is another proof of the maturity and ability of our
organization. The fact that the RCC has continued to implement and realise its
Strategy and Work Programme to the approval and appreciation of the RCC Board,
EU institutions and international partners and supporters clearly points to the
immense work and dedication of the RCC Secretariat.
Last but not least, the fact that the RCC has prompted the debate within the
South-East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) on the future forms and best
frameworks for consolidation of regional cooperation proves that we recognize
the need for a solid and genuine regional cooperation that would create stable
and unhindered conditions for durable stability of our part of Europe. And this, in my mind, will be one of the biggest
challenges in 2013.
I have no doubt that persistent work will bring results, that political leaders
will focus on the future, societies will be allowed to look beyond the national
fences only, reconciliation and rapprochement will continue and Europe will embrace its own South.
Having spent five years at the helm of the Regional Cooperation Council, I hope
that the legacy of the work of the entire Secretariat's staff will be a good
starting point for the incoming Secretary General Goran Svilanovic to put his
proven professionalism and knowledge to the service of the RCC and the entire
region.
Hido Biscevic has been the first Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), since 1 January 2008, following the appointment by the SEECP foreign ministers in Zagreb on 10 May 2007. He was reappointed to the post on 22 June 2010 at the Istanbul meeting of the SEECP Foreign Ministers. A Croatian diplomat, Mr Biščević previously served as the State Secretary for Political Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Croatia (2003-2007), as well as at a number of other high-level diplomatic posts. Before joining the service, Mr Biscevic was editor-in-chief of the Croatian daily Vjesnik. His successor as the RCC Secretary General is Mr. Goran Svilanovic, a Serbian diplomat, who assumes the duty on 1 January 2013.
* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

Hido Biscevic, outgoing RCC Secretary General (Photo: http://www.mojportal.ba)