Strategic Directions of Activities of the Intelligence and Security Agencies of the Western Balkans

Abstract

The Western Balkans is geographically positioned on an important route between Asia and Europe, while the Balkan countries are mostly politically oriented towards the West, which is why it can be said that the entire Balkans has both a Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian position. As an interesting hub with a transit position, which has many advantages in terms of the flow of goods, services, people, capital and ideas, there are many threatening phenomena in the Balkans. The largest of them are organized crimes, cybercrime, terrorism, violent extremism, radicalism, sabotage, subversive activities, intelligence work and diversion. Contemporary global and regional security-political trends and dynamics of viral threatening phenomena require the specific organization of the intelligence-security sector. In addition to the imperative that the security-intelligence system has a strong normative and organizational basis, it is necessary to determine precise strategic directions, so that every activity of the security-intelligence capacities would be purposeful and goal-oriented. Strategic directions are the result of political and legal codification processes, which result from the need for continuous realization of political and security interests of the Western Balkan countries through the operation of the security and intelligence system. In order to achieve the goals defined by the strategic directions, it is necessary to permanently, continuously, coordinate and control the operation of the intelligence and security apparatus of the countries of the Western Balkans. The mentioned convergences in the basic principles do not exclude the existing divergences of the strategic orientations of the security-intelligence systems, which requires a detailed and comprehensive analysis.