The case of Yugoslavia is paradigmatic in the light of its traumatic decomposition, through a war resulting from religious tensions, nationalism, and revanchism. However, in the decades following the end of the Second World War, Yugoslavia was one of the major protagonists of the historical period known as the Cold War. From a position of theoretical independence from the two opposing blocs, Yugoslavia led the Non-Aligned Movement, and from this organisation it was, as a state, an active defender of the processes of decolonisation and on numerous occasions the main supporter of the new states that were gaining independence from their metropolises. The case of Algeria was significant in the relationship between Yugoslavia and anti-colonialism, for never before had Yugoslav involvement been so intense as in this French colony in North Africa.
“... the colonial problem can no longer be solved in the same way as at the beginning of the twentieth century or in the same way as during and immediately after the Second World War, nor as an issue occasionally referred to by the great powers. The fate of peoples who have freed themselves from colonialism, or are on the way to freedom, can no longer be decided without their participation”.
Josip Broz, speech to the Ghanaian parliament, 1961.
TopResearch Methodology
The national archives, both in Algiers and Belgrade, are for the most part not digitised, which is a huge handicap for the researcher. The French national archives, on the other hand, have a large amount of accessible material.
This is a complex research project structured around relations between France and Yugoslavia with respect to the Algerian question, based on a number of primary sources and pre-existing works.
The theory underpinning this theoretical chapter is that Algeria marked the turning point in Yugoslavian internationalist praxis, involving Belgrade for the first time in a conflict resulting from a process of decolonisation, with support that went beyond diplomatic finance.
The questions to be answered are what motivated the escalation of Yugoslav aid to Algeria. What were the repercussions for both Algeria and France. What role did the US and the USSR play.
The type of research is empirical and descriptive, answering the questions: What was Yugoslavia like in the early 1950s? What were its relations with France and with the leaders of the opposing blocs? What were France's relations with the US and the USSR? How did Yugoslav aid materialise? What was the role of the Non-Aligned countries? On the basis of the answers to these questions, we have sufficient data to draw conclusions regarding the main issues raised about Yugoslavia's aid to Algeria, relations with France, the US, the USSR and the Non-Aligned countries.
The research is approached from an objective position, to know the role that Yugoslavia played during the process of Algerian independence through pre-existing archives and research works, it is a qualitative type of research, analysis of sources, establishing a theoretical framework around a pre-existing analysis, conclusions are exposed and demonstrated according to the information gathered from different sources, fragments of press conferences, statements and speeches, typical of a qualitative research.