Foreign Minister Timcho Mucunski participated in the fifth edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, on the panel "Reaping Peace in the Balkans: Dialogue, Business and Connectivity." The forum runs from April 17-19 under the motto "Mapping Tomorrow: Managing Uncertainties."

Mucunski's main message: the Balkans needs dialogue and economic connectivity for lasting peace. Sounds great at a diplomatic forum in Turkey. But how many of those words will translate into concrete actions when Mucunski returns home - that's the question that actually matters.

At a moment when Slovenia is getting a government with a NATO-skeptic, and Bulgaria is heading to its eighth election in five years, talking about "peace and connectivity" in the Balkans is, to put it mildly, optimistic.