Few countries in central and eastern Europe have as much influence in the Balkans as Austria.

For centuries, Austria has forged deep personal connections with the region. The imperial legacy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire is visible in the architecture of Zagreb and Sarajevo, and during the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s, refugees fled into the heart of the Alps. More recently, Vienna has been to the Balkans what Miami is to Latin America: a gateway facilitating trade and movement. Among Balkan hands in the United States, Vienna’s Schwechat airport is familiar terrain.

While the US has supported programs that promote economic connectivity in the region, like the Three Seas Initiative (3SI), Austria plays a unique role in the Balkans through such areas as financial services. Moreover, Austrian officials like Valentin Inzko have shaped diplomacy in the Balkans, while the Austrian Bundesheer has deployed to the region as part of the Common Security and Defence Policy and other missions. Today, officials in Austria and elsewhere are discussing how the Western Balkans can be brought into the European Union.

Join Senior Fellow Peter Rough as he welcomes Claudia Bauer, minister for Europe, Integration, and Family in the Federal Chancellery of Austria, for a policy address followed by a fireside chat on how Austria sees EU enlargement in the Western Balkans.