The United Kingdom is stepping up efforts to support the EU integration of the six Western Balkan states, warning that the region has become a geopolitical flashpoint vulnerable to Russian influence, Politico reported, citing senior British officials.
As European focus remains on the war in Ukraine, tensions in the Western Balkans have escalated. British and regional leaders fear Russian President Vladimir Putin could exploit long-standing divisions in the former Yugoslavia to destabilize the region further.
“You would be foolish to take your eyes off the Western Balkans,” British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said during a recent visit, noting unresolved legacy issues and the risk of Russian intervention. “With war in Europe and the long hand of Russian interference reaching into the region, it’s critical to act.”
Kosovo’s Prime Minister Albin Kurti has repeatedly warned of a “real threat” of renewed conflict, accusing Serbia of aligning with what President Vjosa Osmani described as a “triangle of evil” – Russia, China, and Iran. Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has also spoken of rising tensions, claiming Kosovo discriminates against the Serbian community.
KFOR troops remain essential to maintaining stability, with British soldiers stationed at Camp Film City in Pristina reporting suspected Russian-backed intelligence operations in Kosovo – an assessment supported by a senior official in the capital.
British troops are also monitoring political rallies and elections, as well as securing infrastructure following recent acts of sabotage, including a canal explosion.
President Osmani told Politico that Serbia interfered in recent Kosovo elections and claimed the Serbian-Russian humanitarian center near the border operates as a de facto Russian intelligence base. She said Moscow has tripled its spending on disinformation in the region since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Osmani warned that if Putin emerges strengthened by any Ukraine peace deal, the Western Balkans could become a “fertile ground” for further conflict.
“Putin’s goal here is a destabilized region – divided countries, disoriented populations, and fertile ground for cyber and hybrid warfare,” she said. “If the autocrats seeking chaos are allowed to proceed unchecked, escalation in this region could come very fast.”
Osmani accused Vučić of “dancing to Putin’s tune” and urged Lammy to press the Serbian leader to “stop attacking his neighbors, plain and simple.”
British and EU diplomats fear the Kremlin will deepen its influence by exploiting internal divisions and unrest. “There’s a narrow window for the region to stop sitting on the fence,” a UK official told Politico, speaking on condition of anonymity. “Otherwise, they’ll remain a playground for Russia.”
Lammy said Serbia, while formally pursuing EU membership, also embraces “a darker vision” shaped by oligarchy, state control, and corruption. His comments come amid protests in Serbia over government corruption following the collapse of a railway depot in Novi Sad on Nov. 1, 2024, which killed 16 people.
The student-led protests have no central leadership, frustrating efforts to suppress them. Serbian authorities have been accused of using acoustic weapons against demonstrators – a claim Vučić denied in a tense press conference alongside Lammy in Belgrade.
Lammy, who had planned to sign migration and cooperation agreements with Serbia, condemned the use of force and said the UK “stands with the people.”
Vučić, who has led Serbia for over a decade, rejected criticism and defended Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik, who faces a prison sentence and a six-year political ban for defying an international envoy. Dodik has evaded arrest and was recently welcomed in Serbia and Russia.
The U.S. and UK have imposed sanctions on Dodik in recent years. Lammy declined to comment on further sanctions but said such measures remain “under constant review.”
The protests in Serbia reflect growing disillusionment with the EU, which many demonstrators accuse of ignoring corruption in Belgrade. Unlike other Western Balkan countries, Serbia has maintained close ties with Russia and shows less enthusiasm for EU integration.
According to Politico, Russian disinformation continues to spread through outlets like Russia Today and Sputnik, as well as on social media, exacerbating instability across the region.
