The Foreign Service Journal, March 2014

36 MARCH 2014 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL had advocated for NATO membership for their countries, and they were continuing their activities at the conference. The Republic Formerly Known as Macedonia Macedonia is one of the former Yugoslav republics. I note this ostensibly obvious fact because, like many things in the Balkans, it is in contention. Maps of the tiny country of two million often label it “the Former Yugoslav Republic of Mace- donia,” and all NATO publications attach an asterisk that notes “Turkey recognizes the Republic of Macedonia by its constitu- tional name.” Greece does not recognize it, primarily because the Greeks have an old historical claim to the region. Alexander the Great, King of Macedon, spread Hellenic culture from here to the Hindu Kush during the fourth century before Christ. More darkly, Athens worries that since its northernmost region is named Macedonia, the locals might attempt to claim a Greater Macedonia. This is perhaps not as absurd as it sounds, given more recent attempts to create a Greater Serbia and a Greater Albania. Moreover, it is an article of faith among many Greeks that an essential heartland of ancient Greece has been somehow excised from the body politic. As the rest of us have been preoccupied by other challenges, the splintering of Yugoslavia is almost complete. Montenegro achieved a peaceful secession from Serbia, while Macedonia, Croatia and Slovenia are all independent. Bosnia-Herzegovina is also independent, but still shattered and governed under a virtual European Union protectorate. Serbia is alone and embittered over the loss of Kosovo, which holds the final answer to the ultimate question of the Balkans. That is where Albanians and Serbs still kill one other, while Belgrade inches cautiously toward wider autonomy for its former province. NATO peacekeepers will likely remain there long after U.S. forces leave Afghanistan. My NATO colleagues say, without irony, that young people are the future in the Balkans. They are more likely to be edu- cated, Western-oriented, liberal and optimistic. Their genera- tion also provides the energy necessary to overcome decades of political inertia. They seem less attached to history, despite the fact the recent conflicts mirror their grandparents’ memories of the Balkan Wars that led to World War I. That energy was certainly on display as Aleksandr sang. He knew every song. They were native to Macedonia, but everyone at the table seemed to know them. Ana, the Macedonian For- eign Ministry official, sat on my left, picking at her food when not dragging on a cigarette. She expressed feminist contempt for these old folk tunes. “This is an ode to the beauty of the Macedonian woman,” she explained for my benefit, stubbing out a butt. “This one now is about Maria, who broke my heart,” she said about another, making a face. That did not deter Aleksandr in the slightest. A big, effusive As the rest of us have been preoccupied by other challenges, the splintering of Yugoslavia is almost complete. Lake Ohrid, in Macedonia, is one of the oldest and deepest bodies of water in Europe. James Thomas Snyder