Balkans

Earlier this month, Journalists Without Borders’ annual World Press Freedom Index placed Greece last among European Union countries for press freedom, citing a number of challenges faced by journalists in the country. The index suggests that Greece is a country in which democratic norms are in serious crisis. Journalists covering …

While Bosnian Serb separatism has been put on hold for now, there are other actors destabilising the country who should be added to the UK’s sanctions regime. On 11 April 2022, the UK imposed sanctions on Bosnian Serb politicians Milorad Dodik and Željka Cvijanović. The two separatist leaders were the …

I recently had a fascinating chat with my colleague, Darjan Milutinovic. We discussed a country fighting for its freedom at a time when its independence was denied by a far more powerful neighbor. This adversary launched a full-scale invasion with a much larger army and occupied a quarter of the …

As France made last-ditch efforts to unclog North Macedonia’s stalled EU accession process, currently blocked by Bulgaria, ahead of this week’s EU summit, North Macedonian experts expressed strong doubts about the French proposal. At a debate held in Skopje on Monday, experts said that if media leaks about the unpublished …

A route had been found for exporting Serbian products to Russia, and goods will be shipped via Turkey, and some Baltic countries, Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management Minister Branislav Nedimović said on Sunday. Nedimović told the Serbian Broadcasting Corporation that the issue with apple exports had been resolved and that …

This means that Turkey will once again attack Kurds in Syria in an attempt to push them out of the region and claim their lands. These Kurdish groups that Erdogan labels “terrorists,” however, just so happen to be US allies who fought ISIS. Erdogan has publicly claimed parts of northern …

Résumé L’avion du chef de la diplomatie russe Sergei Lavrov a dû rebrousser chemin alors qu’il était en route vers la Serbie, après l’interdiction de survol de trois pays de l’Otan. Cet incident va relancer la lutte d’influence entre Russes et Occidentaux dans cette région fragile. En savoir plus La …

Putins Krieg und die Russophilie vieler Serben wecken die Furcht vor einer Destabilisierung auf dem Balkan. Doch Geografie und wirtschaftliche Interessen machen das unwahrscheinlich. Dennoch muss die EU in der Region engagiert bleiben. Seit dreieinhalb Monaten frisst sich der Krieg durch die Ukraine und hinterlässt Tod, Zerstörung, Trauer und Hass. …

Secessionist Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik plans to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Belgrade on Tuesday and President Vladimir Putin on 17 June in Moscow, istraga.ba reported. “This may provoke some people in the West, but what I can do. My task is to provide stability for my …

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Russian President Vladimir Putin have discussed the terms of gas supply arrangements and reached an agreement in principle, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told the Bosnian Serb entity TV on Sunday in an interview. The agreement should be elaborated within the companies involved, Lavrov added.