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Throughout the western Balkans, formidable challenges to economic reform and democratic consolidation threaten to reawaken old problems and reinforce negative tendencies.

A decade after the Dayton agreement … progress is being made in the region's overall stability and democratic development. And the role of both Europe and the United States in Balkan affairs has changed dramatically.

The process of democratic consolidation in Serbia has begun in earnest. Equally important, the more virulent xenophobic and authoritarian aspects of Serbian political culture have waned considerably. … For the foreseeable future, the specious superpatriotism and discredited soft dictatorship of the Milosevic variety are likely to hold only marginal appeal.

Had the international community given more careful attention to the consequences a bombing campaign would have on ethnic relations in Kosovo—or at least made adequate preparations to rapidly police the area following such a campaign—the province's present ethnic segmentation and probable monoethnic future might have been avoided.

Discusses difficulties encountered in implementation of the 1995 Dayton Accords; argues that in view of the country's regional and ethnic divisions, and strong dependence on foreign aid, continued international involvement is essential.

The role of historical and cultural influences in recent Balkan warfare has been the subject of considerable debate among commentators both within and outside the former Yugoslavia. For example, some observers, who might be considered members of the primordial hatred school, have emphasized the cyclical role of "ancient enmities" and atavistic impulses in the Balkans. In contrast, another group of analysts, who have subscribed to the paradise lost approach, focus on the long periods during which populations of different languages, religions, and other facets of Balkan ethnic identity, managed to peacefully co-exist. This second perspective downplays historical factors and attributes the violence and savagery of recent years to nationalist leaders who whipped up antagonisms to suit their own political agendas.