Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, experts say the EU and US will want to shore up the stability and Euro-Atlantic orientation of the Western Balkans against any Russian meddling. So might Greece finally recognise Kosovo?Acall by Kosovo for accelerated accession to NATO reflects heightened concern over the stability of the …
Read More »Serbia’s Days of Hedging Between the EU and Russia Might Be Over
The European Union has spent much of the past decade divided and impotent, as it flailed its way through a series of seemingly never-ending crises. But Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine last week appears to have reenergized the bloc, leading to the emergence of a newly assertive EU bound together …
Read More »Presidential Challenger says Serbia Faces Vote between ‘Good and Evil’
Military veteran Zdravko Ponos, an opposition candidate for president in an election in April, tells BIRN that Serbia will struggle to recover from five more years of Aleksandar Vucic. As a candidate for Serbia’s highest office, Zdravko Ponos could hardly have a better biography: a highly-educated military man, former head …
Read More »Big Brother: Serbia’s Media Are Creating Nation of China Lovers
The political elites in Belgrade have made good use of the politically controlled media to transform China’s image in the country. Close connections with the Serbian political elite and the favourable presentation of China in Serbian media, especially from outlets close to the Serbian government, have made China one of …
Read More »In Serbia, State’s Ties to Crime Become Hard to Miss
Under Aleksandar Vucic’s Progressives, the line between the state and organised crime has become increasingly blurred, raising the question – is Serbia a mafia state? According to the Hungarian sociologist Balint Magyar, in a ‘mafia state’ “The state itself, at the top, works as a criminal organisation.”
Read More »Serbia’s President Will Struggle to Get Patriarch He Can Control
Serbia’s power-hungry leader will be following the upcoming election of the next Patriarch closely – but the complex electoral system means there’s no guarantee he will get the candidate of his choice.
Read More »Serb Chetniks’ Links to War Criminals and Extremists Uncovered
Court records in Bosnia reveal that prominent members of Serb nationalist Chetnik organisations have been charged with war crimes, while the Bosnian Security Ministry has warned that such groups are extremists who could pose a security risk.
Read More »Good Money after Bad: Questions Asked of Taxpayer-Funded Air Serbia Rescue
A 100 million-euro recapitalisation of Serbia’s national airline, Air Serbia, is just the latest injection of taxpayer funds into the struggling company. But how many Serbian citizens know it?
Read More »In Spending on Serbs Abroad, Serbia Looks to Maintain Influence
Most of the money Serbia spends on Serbs in the rest of the former Yugoslavia goes to those in Bosnia and Montenegro, where Serbian influence is greatest.
Read More »Hague Court rejects genocide claims by Serbia and Croatia
The International Court of Justice Tuesday dismissed claims of genocide by both Croatia and Serbia allegedly committed during the Balkan wars of the 1990s. “Croatia has failed to substantiate its allegation that genocide was committed. Accordingly, no issue of responsibility under the Convention for the commission of genocide can arise …
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