
For decades, the Balkans has been a region that has suffered from wars and conflicts and is always ranked as not very safe.
The security survey conducted by the Regional Cooperation Council showed that Albanians feel safer living in the Balkans compared to other countries in the Region.
About 68% of respondents in Albania believe more that the Western Balkans region is a safe place to live (68%), while respondents in Kosovo have the lowest confidence as only 45% of them believe that the Balkans is a safe place
A worrying sign is the negative trend regarding the sense of security of the region as a whole. That is, year after year the sense of security is decreasing and the sense of insecurity is increasing in the Western Balkans. Confidence in security has fallen the most in Montenegro, from 84% in 2021 to 56% in 2023.
The prospect of a spillover from Russia's war in Ukraine and rising tensions in the region, particularly in Serbia, Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina, may explain the decline in security confidence among respondents in the Region.
There is slight optimism about future security in the Region, as most respondents within the economies agreed with the question that "The Western Balkans Region will be a safer place to live."
51% agree (strongly and tend to agree) that the region will be a safer place to live next year. However, a substantial part of them, around 43%, disagree with this question. As the population in the Balkans began to feel calmer after three years of intense fear of the pandemic, the ongoing war in Ukraine may be cause for growing concern.
In addition to assessing security in their own countries, respondents were also asked to share their views on the security situation for neighbors in the Region. Respondents in Albania and those in Kosovo think that security is weaker in Serbia. While there is a unified view that Kosovo is the least safe place to live. While these perceptions are more diversified for Albania and Serbia.
On the other hand, respondents in Serbia and Montenegro consider Albania less safe than respondents from other economies. In general, Montenegro and North Macedonia are considered the safest countries in the region.