Title: Russia's Involvement in the Former Yugoslavia
Headings: Russia's Involvement in the Former Yugoslavia
Russia's Involvement in the Former Yugoslavia
South Stream
Map - Former Yugoslavia and South Stream Pipeline
Russia's Interests Beyond South Stream
Limits of Russian Involvement

Content: For example, Slovenia is a member of the European Union and eurozone, and Moscow does not even recognize Kosovo. The region's mountainous geography and cultural differences make it difficult for outsiders to deal with the seven countries of the former Yugoslavia uniformly. All of the former Yugoslav states have developed strong commercial ties to Europe and either have been or aspire to be integrated into the European Union. However, this integration has been complicated by the current European crisis as well as the numerous unresolved ethnic and territorial disputes in the region and the countries' relative lack of Western institutional standards. Russia, which always had relatively strong cultural ties with the region's Slavic and Orthodox countries, can benefit from the slowdown in Europe's integration efforts and the funding slump that the European economic crisis has created in the region. The former Yugoslav republics' need to upgrade their industrial bases and transportation infrastructures opens more avenues for Russian involvement. Moreover, Russia can use its energy wealth and ambition to gain greater relevance in the region. South Stream
Map - Former Yugoslavia and South Stream Pipeline
Russia is already the Balkans' main energy provider, and South Stream will allow it to fortify that position. Natural gas currently makes up about 10 to 15 percent of energy consumption in the former Yugoslav states, but with the construction of the South Stream pipeline, increasing natural gas exploration in the region and the expansion of the area's natural gas infrastructure, natural gas usage is expected to rise. Russian state-owned energy company Gazprom heads the South Stream project.