This Special Security Edition of the Balkan Barometer aims to explore perceptions of public opinion and businesses in the Western Balkans, given the impact and consequences of the war in Ukraine. In this context, the report comes as a specific additional instrument along with other reports commissioned by RCC, such as the Balkan Barometer and SecuriMeter, the objective of which is to provide updated information on citizens and/or business perceptions across a wide array of policy areas pertinent to the Western Balkans.

The report analyses public responses regarding the perceived risks from the war for their economies, potential instabilities and concerns for their resilience. Decisions taken by public authorities in the region regarding their economies’ positioning towards the war and measures taken to cope with consequences are also thoroughly discussed based on data collected from the survey and additional research work. In addition to analysing important components of the impact in the region, such as inflation and energy security, the report also focuses on other related threats, such as disinformation and cyberattacks, which have been present across the region in 2022.

The report consists of two main parts: the Public Opinion Survey, with 3,000 participants from Western Balkan economies with 32 posed questions, and the Business Opinion Survey - a survey of business perceptions in each of the Western Balkan economies with a total of 600 companies, and a total of 24 questions.