Montenegro in the Geopolitical Context of the Balkans

Abstract

The paper analyzes the position of Montenegro in three geopolitical concepts -Atlanticism, continentalism and Neo-Ottomanism. Atlanticism is traditionally interested in the control of the coastal area. In this context, for the US and the UK is much more convenient to have in that zone, in every respect weaker Montenegro, but militarily and economically strong state. From the point of principle interest Atlanticism, it can be concluded that the independence of Montenegro is the objective of this geopolitical concept. However, the Montenegrin coast represents the geopolitical contact zone of Atlanticism, Neo-Ottomanism and Continentalism. The most important geopolitical goal for Atlanticism in this part of the Mediterranean is the control of Otranto, and therefore the most interesting is the coastal zone of Albania. The second objective is to prevent the release of continentalism to the warm sea, which at first could happen in Istria and northern Dalmatia, and therefore the Croatian part of the Adriatic coast is of greater interest than the Montenegrin coast. Montenegro, regardless of its sea zone of great geopolitical interest to Atlanticism, has no primary importance for this geopolitical concept. That is why Atlanticism is likely and ready to transform geopolitical objectives in foreign policy doctrines and strategies and treat Montenegro just as an object of diplomatic trade. Immediately since the independence of Montenegro, Russia has been involved in a very original way in the geopolitical battle for the Adriatic.