Balkans

Recent moves by the Republika Srpska (RS, Serb entity) authorities to introduce a Law creating a parallel High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJPC) are a clear attempt by the entity to unilaterally assume the constitutional responsibilities of the State, which would represent a violation of the constitution and legal order …

“The champion of our petrochemical industry.” So boasted Todor Zhivkov, then-communist leader of Bulgaria, when the country’s first oil refinery at Burgas on the Black Sea coast launched operations in 1963. Nearly six decades later, Bulgaria’s planned economy may be long gone, but the so-called champion continues refining oil into …

Cooperating with international agencies such as Europol is crucial if North Macedonia and the rest of the Western Balkans are to win the fight against terrorism and extremism. On many occasions, tackling terrorism and extremism has only been possible as a joint effort between governments, institutions, and security agencies. For …

Kosovo’s almost decade-long resistance to the creation of an ‘association’ of Serb municipalities might be about to end, analysts say. It was barely four years ago that Albin Kurti was setting off tear gas in Kosovo’s parliament to obstruct the creation of an ‘association’ of Serb municipalities. Today, as prime …

A Greek prosecutor on Wednesday brought terrorism charges against three people accused of participation in an arson attack by an extremist anarchist group against an Orthodox Christian religious society in the northern city of Thessaloniki. The suspects, two men aged 35 and a 20-year-old woman, all Greek citizens, were arrested …

The Hungarian PM’s trip to Moscow further cements his turn away from the West, while Poland and Czechia say they have agreed to settle a long-running dispute over a lignite mine on the border. his is a peace mission,” insisted Hungarian Prime Minister Orban ahead of his controversial visit to …

Far-right leaders from all over Europe gathered in Spain last week to form a united front – but forging a common platform on issues like Russia is proving tricky. Under the slogan “Defend Europe”, representatives of far-right nationalist parties in Eastern Europe and the Balkans attended a summit in Madrid …

The Bulgarian Socialist Party long ago lost credibility among young, progressive, pro-Western leftists. But who else is there on the Bulgarian Left? For progressive, pro-Western, left-leaning voters in Bulgaria, options are limited when election time comes around. Very limited. They might be expected to vote for the Bulgarian Socialist Party, …

Slovakia is traditionally viewed as the more religious part of the one-time common Czecho-Slovak state. Yet the latest census shows the country is becoming more atheist and this shift will likely be irreversible. Population data since 1989 has supported the stereotypical view that Slovaks are the more religious people of …

Kosovo has been urged to find a way to establish the Association of Serb Municipalities (ASM) in Kosovo, without infringing on state sovereignty. Pristina has previously refused, saying it would create a state within a state, like in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which has failed. The request has come from the …