Conflict in the former Yugoslavia

Moderator
Person Interviewed
Okun, Herbert
Kapetanovic, Goran
Abstract
Host Peter Krogh and guests discuss the search for a peaceful solution to conflict in the former Yugoslavia.
Description
For centuries Southeastern Europe was the location of violent struggle across the frontiers of competing empires and religions. Following World War I, the treaty of Versailles created the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, a confederation of six constituent nations that brought together citizens of multiple religions and ethnicities under one banner. Yugoslavia survived in slightly different forms for the next several decades, thanks in large part to communist strongman Josip Tito. When communism collapsed, however, so too did the Yugoslavian borders. In 1991 the constituent republics began to break away, and fighting quickly erupted as regional leaders sought to increase their territory. In the years that followed, the Balkan states were characterized by news of broken ceasefires, the slaughter of civilians, and the failure of peace plans, causing President Clinton to characterize the search for peace in the Balkans as "the most frustrating and complex foreign policy issue in the world today". In this episode of Great Decisions, host Peter Krogh and guests examine the quest for solutions in the Balkans and ask, can peace prevail in what used to be Yugoslavia? Featuring Ambassador Herbert Okun, a retired career diplomat who worked closely on the Vance-Owen Peace Plan, and Goran Kapetanovic, the Yugoslavian Ambassador to Canada who resigned in protest over his government's failure to seriously commit itself to peaceful solutions.
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Date
1994
Subject
Location
Europe; Balkan Peninsula; Former Yugoslavia;
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