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The Congress of Berlin was a gathering of the representatives of the Russian Empire, Great Britain, France, Austria-Hungary, Italy and Germany, the great powers in Europe and the Balkan states; Greece, Serbia, Rumania and Montenegro. and the Ottoman Empire. The Congress was hosted by the German Chancellor Otto Bismarck. The aim of the Congress was to resolve territorial and other disputes in the Balkans after the Ottoman Empire’s defeat in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-8. It also sought to ease tensions in Europe, because other great powers feared that Russia was too strong and was upsetting the continent’s balance of power. The Congress was also designed to restrain Pan-Slavic nationalism. However, the Congress, though successful in its immediate aims, it led to enduring instability in the Balkans, for generations.