At the second panel that analyzed the history of Serbian (Yugoslav)-American relations from the end of the 19th century until today, some of the most eminent Serbian historians in this area, as well as a guest from the United States spoke. Professor Ljubinka Trgovčević talked about the relations between Serbia and the USA in the second half of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century.

After her, Slobodan G. Markovic, a professor at the Faculty of Political Sciences, analyzed the main characteristics of Serbian (Yugoslav)-American relations in the 20th century, from the end of the World War I to the break-up of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Radina Vučetić, a professor at the Faculty of Philosophy, spoke about the influence of the United States in the field of culture and the so-called ‘Americanization’ of Yugoslavia and Serbia in the 20th century, while Phil Tiemeyer, professor of history at Kansas State University, analyzed the impact of civil aviation on relations between the two countries in the second half of the 20th century.

The second day of the conference began with a panel discussion entitled ‘Serbia and the United States Today’. Aleksandra Joksimović from the Center for Foreign Policy, Ivan Vujačić, professor at the Faculty of Economics and the Faculty of Political Sciences at the University of Belgrade, and Dragan Živojinović from the Faculty of Political Sciences at the University of Belgrade spoke on this topic.

‘The main issue at the moment is the normalization of relations between Belgrade and Priština, and when that is resolved, I think that the relations between the United States and Serbia will take an upward path,’ said Aleksandra Joksimović, who is currently Serbia’s ambassador to the United Kingdom. She points out that the changes at the end of 2000 were a key turning point in the US- Serbia relations.

‘The long-term US strategy is to maintain peace and stability in Europe and implement democracy, but today there are many problems in applying democratic principles,’ said Professor Ivan Vujacic, our country’s ambassador to Washington from 2002 to 2009. He explains that we are trying to balance between the West and the East as in the time of Yugoslavia, but that it is impossible because things are not the same.

‘The narrative, which is negative towards the US, is the context toward which we move, and it limits our actions and possible cooperation,’ Dragan Živojinović pointed out. He adds that our relations with the United States could be at a far higher level.

‘Trump’s Administration and the Western Balkans – New or Old Politics’ was the topic of the last panel discussion presented by James Seroka from Auburn University, David Dilman from Abilene Christian University, and Dragan Đukanović from the Faculty of Political Sciences, University of Belgrade.

‘Although I have political experience, it is difficult for me to follow the current course of US diplomacy and the Trump administration,’ admits Professor Dilman. If there are a lot of lies and untrue and unpredictable information, then it certainly opens up space for imagination, explains David Dilman.

‘The current president of the United States is leading a campaign of propagating primarily national interests and is turning to resolving internal issues, which is why his strategy in the Balkans is not organized and predictable,’ James Seroka emphasizes. According to him, the bearers of the US policy in the Western Balkans countries are the embassies and their representatives, the most obvious example being Albania and Montenegro, where the American influence is great.

‘The United States are gradually withdrawing from the project in the Western Balkans over the years, leaving the job unfinished,’ said Prof. Dragan Đukanović. The United States withdrawing from the scene leaves room for new influences, primarily Russian and Chinese, Đukanovic points out.