KOVAČ: THE MIDDLE EAST WAR WILL LEAD TO ISLAMIC RADICALIZATION IN THE BALKANS, TOO

BELGRADE, MARCH 4 /SRNA/ – Eurasian Security Forum Director Mitar Kovač told SRNA that the war in the Middle East will lead to Islamic radicalization and the recruitment of those who agree with Iran’s policy, primarily in that region, but also in the entire Balkans, since Muslim solidarity in this regard practically knows no borders.

Kovač believes that radical Islamists in BiH, the Raška region, and Kosovo and Metohija will most likely not disrupt security processes in the southeastern part of Europe. He pointed out that radicalization could primarily affect the political goals of certain parties in Sarajevo, as well as Albanian political options in Priština. "By that I mean the radicalization of political processes and the political strategies of all those entities that base their ideology on Islam," Kovač stated. He does not believe that there will be terrorist attacks in the Balkans, except that symbols of the United States and Israel, such as embassies, their representative offices, and companies, could potentially be targeted. Kovač recalled that during the time of the Islamic State, the radicalization of the Islamic movement took place in other parts of the world as well, including the Balkans, especially in BiH, the Raška region, and Kosovo and Metohija. "The largest number of volunteers left from here, from southeastern Europe, to fight for the Islamic State," Kovač pointed out. He added that the threat will grow if the Middle East war expands and lasts longer. As a reason for this, he cited information that even now volunteers are emerging in countries neighbouring Iran who are carrying out certain actions against their own governments for siding more with the United States in the region or supporting US interests in the Middle East. "If the war continues, it is quite certain that the conflicts will spill over into all Middle Eastern countries, especially if there were to be an attempt at a ground invasion of parts of Iran, which would make the war prolonged," Kovač assessed.