Security in the Western Balkans is no longer defined only by borders and armies, but by the strength of institutions, public trust and the ability to withstand modern pressure. In an interview with the Albanian Institute for International Studies (AIIS), Arjan Starova, former Albanian foreign minister and President of the Atlantic Council of Albania, outlines why NATO remains relevant in the region: as a stability anchor that promotes standards, resilience and cooperation.
Too often, “security” is treated as something distant – for soldiers, summits and statements from abroad. Starova’s starting point is closer to daily life. When violence and illicit activity affect communities and when manipulated narratives corrode public debate, security becomes personal. “Security is not an abstract concept. When criminal networks and violence affect everyday life, security becomes a matter of protecting individual lives” he said.
From there, Starova makes a direct argument about what security requires in the Western Balkans today. It is not only about military posture. It is also about whether people can trust institutions, whether courts are independent, whether journalists can report freely and whether citizens can separate facts from manipulation. In that sense, NATO’s relevance in the region is not limited to “hard security.” It also lies in what the Alliance expects, reinforces and helps build: democratic standards, interoperability and resilience against modern hybrid threats. As Starova framed it, “What ultimately matters is not the complexity of the rules, but security and democratic standards.”
Resilience begins with credible institutions
Across the Western Balkans, vulnerabilities are often linked to weak rule of law, political interference and institutional fragility. These gaps create openings for corruption and undue influence and they reduce confidence in public decision-making. Starova’s key warning is that internal governance is inseparable from security. “Organized crime is not only a criminal issue; it becomes a security problem when it undermines institutions and public trust,” he said.
This institutional dimension is not a side topic for NATO. Resilience has moved to the centre of security planning alongside deterrence and defence. NATO’s 2022 Strategic Concept describes a threat environment that blends military pressure with hybrid challenges, including cyberattacks, sabotage and information manipulation. That focus was reinforced at the Hague Summit in 2025, where Allies shifted from broad pledges toward implementation and resilience.
For the Western Balkans, the takeaway is practical: the more credible and independent institutions are, the harder it becomes to intimidate, divide or destabilise societies. Stronger procurement safeguards, professional law enforcement, and courts that can act independently are not only governance goals; they strengthen national security and reinforce trust in the Euro-Atlantic trajectory.
Information integrity as a security issue
Starova also places information resilience at the heart of democratic security. “Disinformation is one of the most serious threats to democratic society, because it weakens media freedom, trust in institutions and informed public debate,” he warned. In a polarised environment, manipulative narratives do not need to invent divisions. They can deepen existing fault lines, delegitimise reforms and turn strategic choices into permanent controversy.
The implication is not simply that societies should “communicate better,” but that democratic systems need guardrails: transparency, accountability, independent institutions and a media environment that can operate without fear or capture. In Starova’s framing, external partnerships are most effective when they align with domestic accountability and sustained societal engagement, so that reforms are absorbed and applied rather than performed as a formality.
This is where NATO’s “values” element becomes operational. NATO is a military alliance, but it is also a political community with standards meant to protect democracy, rule of law and institutional independence. Starova summarised those standards plainly: “Freedom, pluralism and an independent judiciary are the essential standards that define the Euro-Atlantic community.” In practice, resilience is therefore not only about defence budgets. It is also about institutions that can withstand pressure, and a public sphere where debate is anchored in facts rather than manipulation.
What NATO delivers in practice
Evaluating NATO’s role in the Western Balkans comes down to a practical question: what does the Alliance deliver on the ground?
First, NATO functions as a stability anchor. Through membership, partnerships and missions, the Alliance raises the cost of escalation and narrows the space for coercion. This role is not merely symbolic: it shapes expectations and behaviour, encourages planning and coordination, and provides smaller states with a level of security they could not generate alone.
Second, NATO supports capability-building and preparedness. In the Western Balkans, this is visible in practical cooperation: training, interoperability, emergency preparedness and the strengthening of defence institutions so they can function professionally and transparently. These contributions are often low-profile, but they reduce vulnerabilities over time and reinforce habits of cooperation across agencies and borders. Starova also points out that security cooperation is one of the few areas where pragmatic engagement can continue even when political dialogue is strained, sustaining professional contacts when politics becomes stuck.
Third, NATO reinforces standards that go beyond formal compliance. Starova’s point is that values become meaningful only when they are applied in everyday governance rather than treated as symbolic alignment. Strategically, societies that internalise democratic standards are less vulnerable to manipulation and capture, strengthening NATO’s collective security in the process.
The regional opportunity: cooperate and accelerate
Starova’s message is ultimately forward-looking: the Western Balkans has a clear opportunity to translate Euro-Atlantic alignment into practical gains for citizens. NATO provides a tested framework for doing so, by creating predictable security conditions, encouraging cooperation and reinforcing standards that make institutions more effective and more trusted.
The region’s advantage is also its reality: it is small and deeply interconnected. That means cooperation can deliver fast returns, from crisis response and preparedness to cross-border coordination and professional networks. When countries invest in these habits of cooperation, they build resilience that is visible and measurable: stronger institutions, more credible public services, and greater investor confidence.
Starova’s bottom line is urgency and momentum. “We should not lose time. The integration process needs to be accelerated,” he said. In this framing, acceleration is not only diplomatic; it is domestic implementation, turning strategic commitments into durable progress and making NATO’s standards and partnerships felt in everyday governance and security.
Conclusion
Starova’s core message is one of confidence in existing frameworks. NATO offers the Western Balkans a proven model that links security cooperation with institutional standards, resilience and predictability. This combination has helped anchor stability while supporting gradual, measurable progress across the region.
By embedding regional security in a broader Euro-Atlantic system of shared expectations, NATO strengthens both national institutions and collective resilience. Its continued engagement reinforces trust, professionalism and cooperation, all key foundations for long-term stability in the Western Balkans.
This article was produced under the project “After the Hague Summit: NATO’s steadfast commitment to defence and deterrence,” implemented by the Albanian Institute for International Studies (AIIS) with the support of the Public Diplomacy Division of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The content is the sole responsibility of AIIS and does not necessarily reflect the views of NATO.
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