Discourse analysis reveals soft securitization renewed EU enlargement salience across the Western Balkans, highlighting political constraints that still impede rapid accession.
Key Points
Investigate how political discourses in the Western Balkans framed regional security and European Union enlargement policy during the early phase of the 2022 Russia-Ukraine War.
Conducted a qualitative discourse analysis of political rhetoric and public statements from Western Balkan leaders following the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Compared cross-regional narratives to examine how threat framing influenced expectations regarding European Union accession.
Demonstrated that securitizing European Union enlargement restored its geopolitical prominence after years of policy stagnation.
Identified that soft securitization constrained both European Union and Western Balkan negotiating positions by misaligning expectations, ultimately hindering rapid accession.