Today, when we witness a clear call to (again) appreciate the specificities of Eastern Europe, it is necessary to consider what our common understanding of peace in the Balkans is, because war is not talked about enough, and peace is talked about even less. Since the aggression against Ukraine began, very few Balkan intellectuals have participated in this debate, despite the fact that voices from the region could and should be heard.

That is why Balkan Talks on War and Peace starts this discussion anew, guided by the following questions. Why couldn’t we maintain peace in Europe after 1989? Germany has witnessed numerous vitriolic debates on the concept of Nie wieder/Never again. What was it that was supposed to never happen again? War in itself? What then if the war is already happening? What do the words ‘historic responsibility’ mean, and to whom does the responsibility for history belong? How can one demand an end to the war and not be accused of ‘vulgar pacifism’? How can war rhetoric in countries not involved in the conflict help to end the war ideologically and tactically? Are we just observers or are we also participants in the in supremacy battle between Russia and Western nations or in the spread of Russian “soft power”? What is necessary to achieve peace in the near and distant future? Ultimately, is pacifism an option only in peace?

International Workshop

BALKAN TALKS ON WAR AND PEACE

October 2, 2023, (CZKD, Birčaninova 21)

11.30   Opening
Welcome Address

12:00 -14:00   Nie wieder! The historical responsibility for (non)action
Panel discussion (in English)

Speakers: Gentiana Kera (Albania), Ivan Vejvoda (Austria/Serbia), Christian Voss (Germany)
Moderator: Carl Henrik Fredriksson (Sweden/Austria)

15:30–18:00    Is there a common understanding of peace in the Balkans?
Panel discussion (in Serbian/Croatian/Bosnian with simultaneous translation into English)

Speakers: Idro Seferi (Kosovo*), Tvrtko Jakovina (Croatia), Senad Pećanin (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Boris Varga (Serbia/Ukraine)
Moderator: Milivoj Bešlin (Serbia)

18:30–20:30    Imperial legacy and the unrepentant past
A talk on history, literature and the present

Speakers: Sergey Lebedev (Russia/Germany) and Dubravka Stojanović (Serbia)
Moderator: Aleksandar Pavlović (Serbia)

October 3, 2023 (CZKD, Birčaninova 21)

9:30–12:00 Decolonizing the Balkans: from Russia’s soft power to ‘Westplaining’
Panel discussion (in English)

Speakers: Nemanja Džuverović (Serbia), Nenad Markovikj (North Macedonia), Miruna Troncotă (Romania), Ognyan Georgiev (Bulgaria)
Moderator: Marija Mandić (Serbia)

12:30–14:30    Is pacifism an option only in peace?  
Panel discussion (in English)

Speakers: Leandra Bias (Switzerland), Paula Petričević (Montenegro), Olga Shparaga (Belarus/Austria)
Moderator: Adriana Zaharijević (Serbia)

In cooperation with Debates on Europe. Supported by the German Federal Foreign Office.
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The event is open to the public, participation in the event is without registration.

The event will be photographed and recorded due to publishing on social networks, the website and other information channels for the purpose of promoting the event and activities of the Institute.