Kosovo: Secession as a Nation-building Project

Abstract

The article focuses on stateаnd nation-building in the partially recognized Republic of Kosovo. The main research question is whether it is possibleto build effective state institutions withinnon-consolidated borders after a “remedial secession” relying on the support of international actors. The article identifies thefactors that determine this possibility. Theyare tradition of independent political being and power organization; peculiaritiesof sociocultural and ethnic composition;goals and strategies of the external actorsand their compliance with needs of the internal actors and the population; level ofnew institutions’ applicability. The authorsconclude that the tradition of power organization, non-consolidated borders (including socio-cultural borders), contradictions between different international organizations and between them and internalactors hamper the process of state-buildingin Kosovo to a great extent. The evidenceis the lack of visible improvements reflected by indicators of the economic and institutional development. Furthermore, weakintegration of Serbian minority, especially in the North Kosovo, remains a majorchallenge to nation-building within existing borders.