1995-10-01a- CIA Conference Report: THE CHALLENGE OF ETHNIC CONFLICT TO NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL ORDER IN THE 1990S GEOGRAPHIC PERSPECTIVES 01-Oct-95

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a majority population in the given group. In all other literally millions of Turks have ancestors who immi-
cases the Christian majorities attempted to force con- grated from various Balkan countries. These groups
version to Christianity or to have the Muslims reclas- lobby for Turkish involvement in their homelands to
sify themselves as Turks and emigrate to Turkey. In protect the Turkish and Muslim peoples there. The
addition, a series of population exchanges took place Turkish situation is discussed at the end of this presen-
during which Muslim groups went to Turkey and tation with particular reference to its relationships
Christians were resettled in the Balkans. This was with Europe and the EU.
especially true of the Greeks; hundreds ofthousands
of Greeks emigrated from western and northeastern
Turkey and were resettled in what is today Greek Potentially Serious Conflicts With Implications
Macedonia and other parts of Greece. Extending Beyond the Region
After World War I, Serbian nationalists followed a The Macedonian Question
policy of intimidation of Muslims (both Muslim Slavs A very serious situation exists regarding Macedonia,
and Albanians) in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in which major ethnic groups-Greeks and Serbs-
and Macedonia (then called South Serbia). Tens of and their respective states are attempting to use histor-
thousands fled to Turkey at that time. Bulgaria has ical issues and incidents as justifications for their posi-
continued to harass its Muslim Bulgarian population. tions regarding this territory.
Policies outlawing Muslim cultural practices and
enforcing name changes (to Christian ones) led to The Greeks claim title to the name Macedonia based
massive emigrations to Turkey as well. It was conve- on fallacious historical claims. They assert that Alex-
nient for Greeks, Serbs, Macedonians, Bulgarians, and ander the Great was a Greek and that therefore Mace-
others to purport that these were Turks-not Slavic or donia is Greek-a claim backed by historical records.
Greek peoples whose ancestors chose to adopt the Not only do all early Greek sources make the point
Islamic religion-and to promote emigration. that he was a non-Greek (the Macedonians were Illyr-
ians related to today's Albanians) but also that the
The Muslim subgroups, although persecuted, do not Macedonians were the enemy of Greece. Certainly the
pose serious threats to their regions. It is interesting to Macedonian Empire maintained Greek language as
note that the Torbesi of western Macedonia and many the lingua-franca of the Empire and had a policy of
Serbian Muslims of the Sandzak and Kosovo have Hellenism, but Macedonia was itself not Greek.
reclassified themselves as Albanians, rather than
assimilate into the greater Serbian or Macedonian Rather than engage in debates about a man who lived
nations. in the 4th century BCE, one should consider more
important historical facts as well as current realities.
The Turkish Minorities Does the concern deal with the name, with Alexander
The Turkish question is still an open one. To date, the Great's nationality, or with current ethnoterritorial
however, the Turkish position (for instance, that of the realities? Clearly it is the latter. After the arrival of the
Republic of Turkey) is similar to that of the Hungari- Slays in Macedonia (including what is today Greek
ans regarding their ethnic compatriots in neighboring Macedonia) starting in the 4th century CE, the Mace-
states. The Turkish Government basically expected donian Slavs maintained close relations with those of
Bulgaria and Yugoslavia to respect the Turks as ethnic Bulgaria. The Macedonian and Bulgarian Slavs came
minorities in those countries. Recently, Bulgaria pres- to form one people with a common language and
sured ethnic Turks into emigrating toTurkey. Approx- church. After the arrival of the Turks their territory
imately 300,000 Turks left. Although the Turkish was administratively (not ethnically) divided. This
Government protested this, it did not invade. The division lasted into the 19th century when Bulgarians
Turks feel pressured by European powers who use the (with the help of the Russians) tried to reunite with
issue of Turkish entry into the European Union as a their ethnic Macedonian kinsmen. As a result of West-
means of keeping Turkey out of intervention in Bul- ern intervention this was not accomplished.
garia and parts of former Yugoslavia. In Turkey itself;
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