Avtal och attityder på Balkan

Sammanfattning: The Brussels agreement is generally regarded as a big step towards further EU-integration of the western Balkans. The creation of the agreement constitutes an important event in the relation between Serbia and Kosovo as well as in the European Union's relationship with the two countries. It is therefore of interest to discuss the potential impact of the agreement, especially when it comes to the attitudes of Serbs and Kosovars towards the EU. This essay researches whether or not the attitudes towards the EU have changed from before and after the Brussels agreement and discusses, through relevant literature and theory, whether or not the Brussels agreement could have had an effect on the potential changes in EU-attitudes. The study presents a case for the possibility of there being a potential impact of the Brussels agreement based on a model developed by the Swedish Institute of International Affairs and the assumptions of sociological institutionalist theory. This potential impact of the Brussels agreement is then problematized by using relevant literature to discuss what factors could strengthen or weaken this possible theoretical relationship between the agreement and EU-attitudes. The results of the study are that the attitudes of Serbs and Kosovars had changed within the studied time period and, in general, become more EU-positive. Furthermore, the strongest motives for the developments of EU-attitudes, based on the existing literature being used in this essay, supported the potential effect of the Brussels agreement on the attitudes. More research is, however, needed on the subject and whether the agreement actually has had an effect on EU-attitudes or not is for further research to discover.