Inside the red circle, the Neum streak, the only one in Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Ottomans did Croatia a great favor… by trying to invade it. Now, Bosnia and Herzegovina only “lurks” on the Dalmatian coast — and Dubrovnik reigns in the Balkans, all thanks to a geopolitical coincidence. But it could be worse.
Croatia, increasingly full of tourism, earns around 15 billion euros per year from this sector alone, according to . Bosnia and Herzegovina, a forgotten country in the middle of the Balkans, does not reach 378 million, according to .
This failure is due, in particular, to the lack of coastline that neighboring countries have to offer and sell. Just a little beach town, Neum, lurks on the coast of the Dalmatia region of this country, which is in every way different from its neighboring Croatia.
Until religion The most common situation is different: the majority of Bosnians are Muslims, while Croatia is a predominantly Catholic country. But all of this has a context.
And not even those who travel by car or public transport from the northern region of Croatia to Croatia, located after Neum (see map), have the habit of passing through the border country, even if just to have a coffee. This is because Bosnia and Herzegovina does not belong to the European Unionwhich makes access more difficult for European visitors, who cannot enter without a passport. A real tourist failure.
To get to Dubronvnik, therefore, transport usually cross a bridge over the sea, which belongs to Croatia, to bypass the Herzegovina region.
And all because, exactly, of Dubrovnik… or the Ottoman Empire. This is how the story goes, well summarized by .
The Ottoman Empire controlled Bosnia in the 17th century, but Dubrovnik was an independent territory, with no connection to Bosnia or Croatia (controlled by the Venetians) — but was under the influence of the Ottomans. Everything was fine, until the enemies of the Ottoman Empire began to invade the territories around it.
Dubrovnik was not an isolated point on the map, geographically separated from Croatian territory — it was actually directly adjacent to and bordering “northern” Croatia, even if it did not directly belong to the territory.
But, to protect yourself from attacks, Dubrovnik decided to “cut” its territory and move a little further away from its neighbor Croatia to avoid threats from the Venetians. He offered Neum to the Ottoman Empire, using his age as a “shield” against attacks.
However, the region of Herzegovina remained dominated by the powerful Ottoman Empire, and it is due to this Turkish influence which is still a predominantly Muslim country today.
This way, whoever came from the north and wanted to attack Dubrovnik would have to face strong Herzegovina first. A remoteness that came in very handy for this coastal city, but which, later, when Yugoslavia separated in the 90s and gave way to several nations — namely Croatia with the right to Dubrovnik — left Bosnia with a tiny window facing the sea.
But it could be worse. Without Neum ceded to the Ottoman Empire in the 17th century, Bosnia would not have any kind of coastline.
If you look at Slovenia… you might also get confused: the coast is also almost entirely “stolen” by Italy. But that’s another story.
Carolina Bastos Pereira, ZAP //
