Securitization between Narrative and Practice: A Praxis Perspective on the Multilateral Securitization of Orthodox Heritage in Kosovo between 1999 and 2011

Abstract Inspired by a case that highlights the limitations of the traditional speech act model of securitization for studying the multilateral level, we propose a reconceptualization of securitization as a process that participants shape through their storytelling praxis. To illustrate our model’s added value, we employ it in a historical analysis of the multilateral securitization of Orthodox heritage in Kosovo between 1999 and 2011 in the United Nations Security Council, United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization, World Heritage Committee, and the Kosovo status negotiations. To trace securitization in each setting and excavate its relation to the broader struggle over Kosovo, we triangulated official documents, Wikileaks cables, and interviews. Our analysis shows that securitization failed before 1999, increased following instances of destruction between 1999 and 2004, and stalled as Kosovo’s status divided the international community in 2008. It thereby demonstrates that the model of multilateral securitization as storytelling allows for a fine-grained and empirically grounded account of actors, narratives, and security practices while maintaining the critical edge of the original framework. Finally, our case narrative also draws out the previously ignored centrality of heritage to the struggle over Kosovo’s status and nuances recent scholarship on the securitization of heritage.