Borderland Narratives and Regional Identity: The Role of Security Stereotypes in Shaping Discourses on EU Enlargement in the Western Balkans
The article explores the dynamics of the establishment of the Western Balkans’ regional identity, emphasising the European Union’s (EU) influential role in shaping this identity amidst ongoing EU integration challenges, focusing on the perception of the region as a borderland of Europe. The main hypothesis in the article is that enduring Balkanistic narratives, which include perception of the region as a borderland that requires Western supervision continue to shape perceptions of the (Western) Balkan identity, particularly within the context of the EU accession. Starting from a brief overview of their origins, the article focuses on the analysis of security-related stereotypes, which are associated with the position of a borderland and their role in shaping contemporary debates on EU enlargement in the Western Balkans. Based on discourse analysis of public statements and speeches made by the EU officials in the period from 2014 to 2024, the research provides insights into how these stereotypes are interpreted in political statements about security aspects of enlargement, assessing their implications on perception of the regional identity.
Ivana Milićević
Ivana Milićević is a Research Assistant at the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory. She is a PhD student of International and European studies at the Faculty of Political Science, University of Belgrade. At the same Faculty, Ivana graduated in international affairs and acquired her MA in international studies, at the module of Contemporary Balkan studies, by defending the thesis on defining the regional identity of the Western Balkans through the EU enlargement process.
She completed a volunteer research programme at the Institute of International Politics and Economics, and was engaged as a Project Coordinator from 2022 to 2025 in a civil society organisation RERI. She is a member of Research forum of the European movement in Serbia and a member of Youth Climate Diplomacy Council. Her primary interests are the issue of supranational identities at the post-Yugoslav space and processes of regional and European integration in the Balkans.