Welcome Note

Our initiatives include the Sarajevo Security Conference, the region’s premier security and policy forum, as well as publications from our Western Balkans Observatory, which curates policy and analysis from across the region. Our team is also spearheading the formation of the first-ever Western Balkans Caucus in the US Congress, and hosts panels and symposia on regional issues at our Washington, DC office. 

Together, these initiatives form the Western Balkans Center—the first and only dedicated Western Balkans policy center in Washington, DC.

Our aim is to create a comprehensive repository of knowledge and expertise on the Western Balkans to support US and European policymakers in advancing the region’s path towards EU and NATO membership. At the same time, we aim to shape coordinated and responsive strategies to address emerging internal and external threats within the region, including destabilizing influences from actors like China and Russia. Ultimately these aims can only be realized through increased understanding of the core issues facing the Western Balkans.  

The launch of our “Dayton Plus” policy report in the U.S. Congress in February 2025, the most comprehensive guide to constitutional reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina ever published, marked a momentous step in our ongoing policy efforts regarding the Western Balkans. 

Finally, we will regularly publish Regional Watch commentary series to familiarize our audience with key developments and their implications. In the coming months, our existing and upcoming projects will further cement the Western Balkans Center as the chief interchange in Washington and the broader transatlantic community for thinking about the political horizons of the Western Balkans.    

Dr. Azeem Ibrahim OBE
New Lines Institute, Senior Director

Emina Muzaferija
Western Balkans, Project Manager

Susanna Kelley
Western Balkans, Analyst