Balkans

Investigators have documented the use of foreign exchange offices in Albania to move drug money, either in crypto or via a centuries-old, trust-based system called Hawala. The area is known as Dollari – a narrow row of currency exchanges opposite Albania’s central bank in downtown Tirana. Here, cash is king, …

In a sudden change of approach, the United States’ Office of Foreign Assets Control, OFAC on Wednesday lifted sanctions that had been imposed on the former president of Bosnia’s Serb-led Republika Srpska entity, Milorad Dodik, and on 47 individuals and companies connected to him. Sanctions were also lifted from Zeljka …

‘Autocrats help autocrats’ At the end of 2021, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban pledged 100 million euros for Republika Srpska. At the time of the announcement, the aid sparked public debate in Bosnia and Herzegovina about whether the funds would come with strings attached, a possible quid pro quo from …

What does solidarity truly mean – especially in contexts where ethnonationalism is deeply entrenched? This question has guided much of my work as a community organizer, creating inter-ethnic spaces for Balkan diasporas in the UK. As someone with roots in Kosovo, I’ve often faced the erasure of my identity – …

Turkey was among the first to recognise Kosovo in 2008 and has since backed its efforts for wider international recognition. During the early 2010s, frequent visits between then prime minister Hashim Thaci and Erdogan deepened ties, while Turkish companies secured major stakes in Kosovo’s economy: from the airport and electricity …

When Përparim Rama entered the political scene in Kosovo during the 2021 local elections, many considered him a breath of fresh air for the governance of Prishtina. This was because he did not come from party structures, but it was also due to his professional background as an architect with …

But it had a dark side to it, nevertheless. Some 300,000 ethnic Turks were forced to leave their homes in the 1980s, after the regime attempted to Bulgarian-ise them by force. Information about the Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster in the Ukraine of 1986 was concealed from the population, while debris …

“A few weeks before the 2024 election campaign in Bosnia and Herzegovina started, my phone rang – it was a top-ranking person in the city administration and the ruling party. This person had never called me before nor have they since,” recounted Aleksandar Drakulic, the owner of a local news …

Kosovo’s local elections on October 12 come at a time of unusual strain. What should have been a routine democratic exercise has instead become a test of whether the country can sustain its institutions, integrate its Serb minority, and manage the costs of decisions taken in pursuit of sovereignty. The …

“A few weeks before the 2024 election campaign in Bosnia and Herzegovina started, my phone rang – it was a top-ranking person in the city administration and the ruling party. This person had never called me before nor have they since,” recounted Aleksandar Drakulic, the owner of a local news …