Documents / FOIA release
This Central Intelligence Agency conference report, dated October 1995, contains the proceedings of a conference on ethnic conflict held 30 September to 1 October 1993. The CIA's Geographic Resources Division sponsored it. Academic geographers, anthropologists and US Government officials presented papers on ethnic and territorial conflict in Eastern Europe, Western Europe, the former Soviet Union, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, Asia and South Asia. They also discussed what these conflicts mean for US policy. The document contains no UFO material.
“Terry”12 pages
C00123268 Ethnic and Territorial Conflicts in Eastern Europe related to experiences with ethnic cleansing and popu- lation resettlement policies in the near or distant past. We must be careful to distinguish between issues that Ronald Wixman potentially could lead to serious conflict and those that ProfessorofGeograhyare merely local cultural demands. In the latter cate- UnivProfessor ofGeograp gory are issues related to simple demands for ethnic recognition or the right to one or another cultural insti- tutions (native language in the media and education, Introduction native language press, or freedom of religion) that do not threaten to destabilize any given state or nation or Today's Eastern Europe consists of Estonia, Latvia, that will probably not result in open hostility between Lithuania, Poland, the Czech and Slovak Republics, groups. Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Croatia, Bos- nia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Yugoslavia (con- Quite serious to a rapidly changing picture of causes sisting today of Serbia and Montenegro), Albania, for interethnic conflict in Eastern Europe is the war in Greece, and European (or Thracian) Turkey. One can Bosnia and Herzegovina. The current war in Bosnia also add to this list Moldova (Bessarabia) and the may be the precursor to an even greater war that might western part of Ukraine, as they are culturally, histori- involve many other nations, including America's cally, and geographically tied to the rest of this greater NATO Allies Turkey and Greece on opposite sides of region. At this point in time, on the other hand, East- the conflict. In addition, the applied policies by the emn Germany and Austria should not be considered Western powers toward this ongoing conflict affect part of the East European realm. The reasons for not only the Balkans as a whole but also other parts of inldnPree n hainTukyi-atr Eastern Europe and the Middle East. The response, for Europe are both historical anc ral a Easterd ethnic reality important to the current geopolitical situation genocide ethnic cleansing) both sets a precedent for in the Balkans. These last two regions have always other countries with problematic minorities and forces been part of the East European culture realm, but for others to assess their own situations relative to foreign purely political and military reasons related to the nations with exclave populations. Cold War period they were classified differently. Before discussing ethnic conflicts in Eastern Europe Throughout Eastern Europe, there are serious issues of today and the impact of Western policy in the "Yugo- nationalism that threaten the stability of individual slav War," a brief discussion o d t is coutris a wel ste rgio asa hol. Mst eri tncton etwenthe reasons sforand siediontonds fo ous of these are conflicts stemming from ethnic- and territorial claims. This distinction is necessary if one ousal-serc ads by one wishes to obtain an accurate picture of ethnoterritorial or more parties. While some of the issues, center pri- ,conflict in this diverse region. Claims to territory on marly on ethnic, religious, linguistic, or cultural ethnic, national, religious, linguistic, and historical rights and privileges, others are manifested in grounds are common around the world. Sometimes extremely serious demands for control of given two groups claim the same territory with differing but regions, in open conflict based on ethnic or territorial equally understandable reasons for doing so. The Jew- claims or in international disputes over the recognition ish/Palestinian conflict represents such a situation. or nonrecognition of given countries. Here two peoples are fighting over the same piece of territory, as it is tied to their current ability to exist as Most serious for Europe and the United States, how- distinct nations. On the other hand, many conflicts are ever, are those that deal with territorial conflict based tied to far more distant issues in which historical on various ethnic claims that demand changes in national control of these regions and/or population exchanges or attempts at ethnic cleansing. Indeed, many of the justifications for current actions are 25
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FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 205 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.