Joe Biden’s Balkan Policy Scares Moscow

Joe Biden's election is generating anxiety in Moscow that Russia's global ambitions will be more directly challenged. While President Trump focused on withdrawing American forces from Europe and avoiding embroilment in any new conflicts, the Kremlin fears that President Biden will reengage in disputed regions in pursuit of Western integration.

The recent tour of the Balkans by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov demonstrated Moscow's disquiet. Lavrov's statements about the importance of the Balkans projected Russia's own aspirations on to Washington. He claimed that some Western countries "would like to turn this part of Europe into an arena of geopolitical confrontation and create new dividing lines." That is precisely what the Kremlin is trying to accomplish to prevent the remaining Western Balkan countries from settling their disputes and qualifying for NATO and EU membership.

Lavrov targeted two states that enable Moscow to pursue its regional "divide and conquer" strategy - Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia. In his controversial visit to Bosnia-Herzegovina on December 15, Lavrov openly opposed NATO enlargement by stressing the military neutrality of the Serbian entity inside Bosnia (Republika Srpska, RS). In reality, such decisions can only be made by the central government in Sarajevo.

The Bosniak and Croatian members of the country's presidency

pointedly refused to meet with Lavrov and called his visit disrespectful toward their country. They criticized him for meeting first with Milorad Dodik, the Serbian member of the presidency in the RS, and for interfering in Bosnia's internal politics. Lavrov claimed that both presidents were acting on instructions from outside powers, clearly implying the U.S.

Lavrov asserted that...