United States (USA) abandon the policy of state building and interventionism on Zapadnom Balkanu and are turning to cooperation, according to the report of the State Department to Congress on the policy towards the Western Balkans, "a region of direct importance to the security and economic interests of the US", the Beta agency reports.
"The era of US-led nation-building has passed. US policy in the Western Balkans is not focused on rescue or reconstruction, but on stability and mutually beneficial partnerships," states the "Report to Congress on US Policy to Promote Regional Stability and Prosperity in the Western Balkans".
In the report prepared at the request of Congress and published on the website of the State Department, it is stated that "US efforts in the Western Balkans contributed to the creation of stability, which laid the foundations for a different type of American engagement".
The US administration is said to be focused on empowering local actors to solve their own challenges, rather than maintaining an over-dependence on international intervention or oversight, while the US is ready to provide support where its involvement is desirable and where it advances US interests.
It is explained that promoting stability and advancing US economic interests in the Western Balkans makes the US "safer, stronger and more prosperous" and that long-term US policy in the region is aimed at expanding partnerships, countering threats affecting the US and regional stability, as well as increasing economic and trade cooperation.
"Malicious actors can exploit regional instability to the detriment of American interests. American investments in the Western Balkans over the past few decades have produced tangible results, including strong and positive relations with all six countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia," it added.
In addition to regional stability, countering the malicious influence of Russia and China, and strengthening economic and trade cooperation, the report lists investments in energy and infrastructure, the fight against organized crime, and strengthening security cooperation as key priorities.
"The main pillar of the administration's policy is maintaining stability in the region as a precondition for the achievement of other goals," he pointed out and added that the US is focused on developing positive relations with all actors in the region and, in this context, is planning a dialogue with North Macedonia and Serbia this year.
It is emphasized that unresolved disputes and long-term divisions undermine regional stability.
In this context, the USA continues to encourage Serbia and Kosovo to make progress in the normalization of relations, with the aim of reaching a negotiated and permanent agreement acceptable to both parties.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the USA remains committed to the Dayton Peace Agreement, as well as to the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The administration strives to strengthen stability and will continue to encourage actors in Bosnia and Herzegovina to avoid destabilizing and divisive moves, which would threaten the opportunities for the advancement of the common economic agenda, it added.
It states that the integration of Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia into NATO has strengthened the Alliance and states that the US will continue to encourage countries to modernize their militaries and meet NATO goals, as well as to use multilateral platforms, such as the US-Adriatic Charter (A5), to encourage regional cooperation and locally driven solutions to regional security challenges.
When it comes to Kosovo, it is stated that the US armed forces continue to participate in the NATO KFOR mission in Kosovo, which is a key component in ensuring a safe and secure environment and freedom of movement in Kosovo, as well as continuing to support the transformation of the multi-ethnic Kosovo Security Forces into professional territorial defense forces.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is encouraged to increase its defense budget in order to contribute to regional and global security, while Kosovo and Albania are stated to be founding members of the Peace Committee and will join Bosnia and Herzegovina as contributors to the International Stabilization Force for Gaza, which emphasizes the transition of the region from a user of security to its provider.
Continued cooperation with Serbia
The report also states that security and defense cooperation will be continued with Serbia "in ways that advance American interests."
As the second pillar of US policy towards the Western Balkans, the report cites competition for US commercial interests in a region that provides economic opportunities.
With a population of 18 million, the region is located on important transportation corridors, has natural resources, a growing technology sector and a skilled workforce. In cooperation with governments, the US will encourage local efforts to improve the business environment, reduce regulatory barriers, strengthen contract enforcement and ensure transparent procurement processes that benefit US companies, it said.
The US administration is prioritizing working with partners to strengthen investment screening mechanisms that protect critical infrastructure from predatory foreign takeovers. To achieve these goals, the State Department will work with the Department of Commerce, the International Development Finance Corporation, the Export-Import Bank, the Trade and Development Agency, and other institutions to identify, develop, and promote businesses that benefit both American companies and regional economies.
Market access is key. The administration is focused on ensuring fair and reciprocal trade and removing barriers for American companies. The Office of the US Trade Representative is negotiating reciprocal trade agreements with North Macedonia and Serbia. The framework agreement with North Macedonia from February will allow American exporters unprecedented access to that market, it is stated.
The report states that the region suffers from an infrastructure deficit as physical transport networks lag behind European standards, digital infrastructure is a challenge due to uneven high-speed broadband internet coverage and insufficient cyber security capacities to protect the region's growing digital networks, and the energy infrastructure is outdated, inefficient and sometimes too dependent on Russian imports.
The US will continue to invest in infrastructure in partnership with American companies, it adds and specifies that it will work to ensure that "American companies make a significant contribution to strategic infrastructure corridors, including the Adriatic-Ionian Corridor and Corridor VIII from the Adriatic to the Black Sea."
The US will support regional forums such as the Three Seas Initiative and work to expand bilateral agreements, building on the US-Serbia Intergovernmental Agreement on Energy Infrastructure from 2024, it added, explaining that intergovernmental agreements allow US companies to compete more effectively for strategic projects in transportation, information and communication technologies, and defense industries against competition from rival actors and bidders with lower standards.
The report notes the region's energy dependence on Russia and states that diversification of energy sources, including abundant American energy resources, increases regional stability and prosperity.
US liquefied natural gas, nuclear technology (including small modular reactors), and renewable energy sources present commercially attractive and geopolitically viable alternatives. All these countries participated in February's Transatlantic Summit on Gas Security. Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina have joined a joint statement on investments that can increase the safe and reliable supply of energy to Europe, it is specified.
The State Department will actively work to convert regional interest into commercial business, and priority projects include the Southern Interconnection gas pipeline between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, the proposed Serbia-North Macedonia gas interconnector, the development of hydropower in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia and Serbia, the improvement of Kosovo's coal-fired thermal power plants and coal gasification projects, as well as additional transmission cables connecting the power grids of the Western Balkans to European markets.
The participation of the American private sector in these projects contributes to the administration's goal of eliminating unsafe Russian gas in the region and strengthening access to the American market, the document emphasizes.
The report also states that the U.S. has a commercial and strategic interest in supporting reforms that create a predictable, transparent, and rule-governed business environment in which U.S. companies can successfully operate because poor governance deters investment, distorts competition, and is a conduit for transnational organized crime.
China and Russia's interference
One of the key threats to the USA and the Western Balkans is the malicious interference of China and Russia, which "actively seek to take advantage of instability, corruption and weak governance in the region."
Maintaining stability and expanding commercial cooperation are powerful tools to counter malign influence in the Western Balkans, it said, adding that Moscow is fueling ethnic tensions and funding destabilizing actors to pressure politicians and undermine public trust in Western institutions, while China is expanding its soft power and using trade, state loans, bribes, propaganda and partnerships with elites to increase influence, focusing on areas with low levels of transparency and weak governance.
The US administration's focus on regional stability and commercial engagement is the most enduring defense against both forms of interference. Countries with growing economies and transparent institutions are much less susceptible to manipulation, the report said.
Criminal groups from the Western Balkans pose a direct threat to national security and US territory, the report added.
Criminal networks from the Western Balkans have established connections that strengthen and enrich Western Hemisphere drug cartels designated as foreign terrorist organizations, which in turn traffic in illegal narcotics and facilitate illegal immigration to the United States.
The US administration will dismantle these networks wherever they operate, with priority given to partnering with local actors to dismantle transnational criminal organizations, disrupt the flow of illegal drugs destined for the US market, and combat related money laundering and illicit financial flows, the report said.
When it comes to the strategy for the use of funds, the report states that "the administration directs resources to activities that bring clear and measurable benefits to American interests, prioritizing short-term and tangible results over unlimited institution building."
The focus, as stated, will be on: market access for US companies, commercial agreements, security, combating organized crime, educational exchanges and regional security programs.
Finally, it is added that the US continues its programs of arms control, military training, international military education, peacekeeping operations, and mine clearance in the Western Balkans region.
Source: Beta
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