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The Evolution of Greece's Economic Relations with Its Balkan Neighbors: A Critical Analysis.
Despite geographic proximity, Greece's economic relations with its Balkan neighbors have been inconsistent and often erratic. Periods of economic cooperation alternated with spells of conflict, trade barriers, and low levels of transactions. The demise of communism in the late 1980s to early 1990s, and the end of the Cold War that followed, inaugurated a new era of economic cooperation between the countries of Southeastern Europe (SEE), as the Balkans are also known. Although lagging behind its European Union (EU) partners, the post-Cold War era found Greece in a relatively strong position vis avis its Balkan neighbors. Along with Turkey, Greece was the only other Balkan country not to succumb to communism. As a result, Greece emerged with the region's strongest, most developed market economy and a stable democratic political system. For example, while the per capita Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Greece stands at about $19,000, Bulgarians, Albanians, Romanians, and most other Balkan neighbors earn much less, some less than one fourth. (1) This competitive advantage has prompted official Athens and Greek entrepreneurs to seek closer and wider economic cooperation with SEE countries who are struggling to democratize their societies and climb out of the economic morass left behind by the departed communist regimes. Taking advantage of cheap labor, inexpensive raw material, and emerging markets, scores of Greek companies have invested in these countries with an unprecedented intensity. Since 1990, Greece's exports to Balkans countries have increased by nearly 400 percent. (2)
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