Description
Book SynopsisTracing the development of informally institutionalized conflict dynamics in Bulgaria, Macedonia, and Kosovo, Maria Koinova analyzes why some conflicts were resolved with minimal violence after the end of communism and others broke out into civil war.
Trade Review"Koinova . . . is interested in why ethnonationalist conflicts vary in the level of violence they generate, why violence at whatever level persists, and when and why things change for the better or the worse. To get at the answers, she explores three cases, similar in their characteristics but different in their outcomes: Bulgaria (where majority-minority conflict has been free of violence), Kosovo (where it has not), and Macedonia (somewhere in between). Elaborate but lucid theorizing informs her explanations." *
Foreign Affairs *
"The book is innovative because it provides an alternative way of theorising governance of majority-minority relations and it opens up new thinking about EU enlargement into the post- communist Western Balkans." *
Political Studies Review *
"A conceptually sophisticated and empirically rich study. . . . Koinova uses comparative case studies of Bulgarian, Macedonian and Serbian policies toward Kosovo to explore the level and duration of violence among groups. Internal conflict dynamics are critical, especially interactions between ethnic majorities and minorities in the final days of communist rule. Sequencing is also important, making outcomes contingent and dependent on agency. Koinova's excellent book is an essential read for anyone interested in the Balkans, ethnic conflict and the study of politics more generally." * Richard Ned Lebow, King's College London *
"In this nicely written and richly conceptualized comparative study, Maria Koinova compellingly argues that periods of "critical juncture"
Table of ContentsList of Abbreviations
Introduction: Applying Path-Dependence, Timing, and Sequencing in Conflict Analysis
Chapter 1. The Majority-Minority Relationship and the Formation of Informally Institutionalized Conflict Dynamics
Chapter 2. Self-Reinforcing Processes in the Majority-Minority Relationship
Chapter 3. International Intervention During the Formative Period
Chapter 4. International Agents, Self-Reinforcement of Conflict Dynamics, and Processes of Change
Chapter 5. Intervention of Identity-Based Agents: Kin-States and Diasporas
Chapter 6. Change in Conflict Dynamics
Chapter 7. Continuity in Conflict Dynamics
Conclusions: Lessons Learned About Informally Institutionalized Conflict Dynamics
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Acknowledgments
