Researchers from the Institute of International Politics and Economics participated in the national scientific conference “250 Years of the United States,” held on 29–30 June 2026 at the Faculty of Political Science, University of Belgrade. The conference was organized by the U.S. Embassy in Serbia and the Center for the Studies of the United States of America at the Faculty of Political Science, University of Belgrade.

The Institute was represented by Dr. Vladimir Trapara, Dr. Veljko Blagojević, Dr. Mladen Lišanin, and MA Pavle Nedić, who presented the results of their research at panels dedicated to the history, grand strategy, and foreign policy of the United States.

Dr. Vladimir Trapara participated in the panel “Grand Strategy, Doctrines, and the Use of Force in U.S. Foreign Policy”, where he presented the paper “The Applicability of John David Lewis’s Concept of Unambiguous Victory to Contemporary U.S. Foreign Policy: Lessons from the Civil War and the Pacific War for Trump’s Grand Strategy”. The paper examined John David Lewis’s concept of “unambiguous victory” through the experiences of the American Civil War and the Pacific War, assessing its applicability to contemporary U.S. foreign policy. Particular attention was devoted to the relevance of this concept for the Trump administration’s interventions in Venezuela and Iran.

Dr. Veljko Blagojević participated in the panel “Society, Culture, Religion, and Political Ideas in the Making of the United States” with the paper “The United States in the Great War: A Global Demonstration of Power and New Values”. His presentation demonstrated how U.S. participation in the First World War marked a turning point in the country’s emergence as a global power, while analyzing the political and ideological foundations of American engagement and the significance of Wilson’s Fourteen Points for shaping the post-war international order.

At the same panel, Dr. Mladen Lišanin presented the paper “A Mummy on the Eastern Seaboard: Edgar Allan Poe, Society, and Politics in the Jacksonian Era”. Through an analysis of Poe’s short story “Some Words with a Mummy”, he demonstrated how the author satirically challenged dominant perceptions of American society, progress, and democracy during the presidency of Andrew Jackson, while also raising broader questions about American identity and political culture beyond his term.

MA Pavle Nedić participated in the panel “Individuals Who Shaped U.S. Foreign Policy” with the paper “Strobe Talbott’s Role in Shaping U.S. Policy toward Russia during the Clinton Administration”. The paper analyzed Strobe Talbott’s contribution to the formulation of U.S. policy toward post-Soviet Russia, with particular emphasis on the development of the policy of engagement with Russia, Talbott’s evolving position on NATO enlargement, and the gradual adaptation of U.S. strategy to changing international circumstances throughout the 1990s. In addition, Pavle Nedić served as moderator of the panel “Domestic Sources of U.S. Foreign Policy: Institutions, Ideas, and Polarization”.

Photos: PR Team of the Faculty of Political Science