European security and international terrorism: the Balkan connection

Abstract

European security today is not threatened by the confrontation between military alliances and countries, but by new external dangers. First of all it is the threat of “international terrorism” and its link to “weapons of mass destruction,” as well as the frequently related problems, such as ethnic and religious conflicts in Europe, transborder organised crime, illegal immigration, smuggling of arms and drug trafficking. As the war in Iraq has highlighted, proliferation of non‐viable states with a risk of becoming a new heaven for terrorism is also possible. This kind of proliferation can be as dangerous as traditional proliferation problems. The existence of grey zones in the post Yugoslav space with transparent borders and paramilitary formations linked with international organised crime, displaced persons and unreturned refugees create a fertile soil for radical Islamic organisations being elbowed out from the leading European countries.