Balkan Insight

Constitutional Court sets October 6 deadline for MPs to elect new head of state – if they want to avoid new snap parliamentary elections.

New laws will drastically reduce presence of gambling advertisements, as Prime Minister Rumen Radev complains Bulgaria's towns and villages 'look like Las Vegas'.

The fallout from the condolences Andrija Mandic sent to deceased Bosnian Serb war criminal Ratko Mladic’s family poses the latest threat to the career of this canny and chameleon-like political operator.

Israeli lawyer Zion Amir, currently representing PM Benjamin Netanyahu, is one of three directors of a company now producing Israeli drones in Serbia, BIRN/Haaretz can reveal.

Denis Becirovic uses UN podium to condemn honours paid in Serbia to convicted former Bosnian Serb general at his funeral, calling it an ‘anti-civilisational act’.

With Russia interfering to exacerbate divisions and the United States rejecting liberal transformation for economic transactionalism, the European Union should develop a targeted and realistic approach to accession for Western Balkan countries.

Lack of up-to-date legislation and weak monitoring mechanisms mean AI-generated fakes and manipulated content are finding their way into Albanian political campaigning – and need to be tackled before 2027’s local elections.

Differing views are apparent between the seven countries invited to join Ukraine in its new regional platform designed to promote trade and security cooperation.

As Croatian, Italian and Slovenian interior ministers meet to discuss cooperation, Croatia urges EU border agency to strengthen presence in Bosnia – which many irregular migrants to Europe cross.

Intelligence service chief Vlora Hyseni is accused of involvement in a major corruption scandal surrounding tenders for the agency handling development of state information systems.

The country’s regulators currently lack the ability to monitor what Big Tech is doing with all the personal data it captures – although EU membership may help.

Albania is moving to bring its disabled access standards into line with the EU’s own, but activists warn that without funding and effective enforcement, the new law could once again fail to deliver meaningful change.

Thousands gather twice a day in Pristina’s main square to protest against last week’s verdict convicting four Kosovo guerrilla leaders of war crimes - and some politicians are demanding legislative action to change the way the Hague court works.

At a meeting at UN headquarters with chair of Bosnia and Herzegovina's presidency, secretary-general Antonio Guterres says glorification of war criminals is a threat to regional reconciliation and stability.

Ahead of Croatia's annual Day Against Violence Against Women, protests staged in 17 towns and cities called for a stronger institutional response and a specific law against gender-based violence.

The monitor appointed by the Hague tribunal to check progress of the contempt-of-court case against ultranationalist Vojislav Seselj said she has not received a single response to her inquiries from the Serbian Justice Ministry.

Far-right firebrand Calin Georgescu faces fresh legal troubles as police investigate organised criminal group that allegedly defrauded a businessman of a million euros.

Catch up on the weekend’s most important developments with Balkan Insight’s digest of news from countries across the region.

Brussels has confirmed its desire to explore an “associate membership” status for Ottawa.

Children in Montenegro are already using AI to help with schoolwork, even as parents and teachers wait for guidelines from the state.

As Moldova consolidates its municipalities on its path to EU membership, the minority-populated, Russian-speaking regions in the south present challenges as questions of administrative efficiency, minority identity and territorial politics clash.

Climate change has contributed to a surge in cases of West Nile virus in North Macedonia, prompting calls for better monitoring and more targeted mitigation measures.

The EU said Ursula von der Leyen's Balkan visit will miss Serbia and Bosnia – citing elections – but Serbia's president dismissed this as ‘elegant’ excuse for a no-show after controversy over Ratko Mladic's funeral.

With elections approaching in Bosnia and Serbia, rhetoric is heating up, while in Turkey and Albania, campaigners are feeling the pressure, as our round-up of Balkan Insight Premium stories shows.

Protesters filled the main square in Pristina as demonstrations continued against this week's verdict in The Hague convicting four Kosovo Liberation Army leaders of war crimes.

Record-breaking penalties imposed by Bosnia’s Central Election Commission for campaign violations will not change the main parties’ ways, fair-elections campaigner warns.

American-born wife of former Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou who played pivotal role in supporting women's rights in her adopted country, dies just before turning 103.

Authorities arrest fund managers suspected of manipulating markets and liquidate 130 troubled investment funds as turmoil roils country's financial industry.

Seventy-five years-old and expelled from his party, former Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras shows no sign of going quietly into the night.

As Montenegro gets ever closer to EU membership, Brussels’ seeming determination not to acknowledge the gang warfare still plaguing the country is puzzling – and irresponsible.

Far from isolated incidents, experts say the targeting of social media accounts linked to anti-government protesters in Albania is part of a ‘coordinated pattern’ of censorship.

Elsewhere, Poland and Russia trade threats after drone strike on Ukrainian train bound for Warsaw; Slovak Defence Minister under pressure to explain dealings with Czech arms tycoon; and Czech PM floats idea of creating ‘Euro Patriot’ joint missile defence…

MEP Siegfried Muresan has accepted the challenge of becoming Romania’s prime minister-designate, but his prospects for forming a new government are poor, experts said.

Demonstrations continue against guilty verdicts handed down to former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci and three other former KLA leaders – with war veterans hoping to widen the protest movement.

Kalavsky was one of three high-ranking Slovak security or law enforcement figures that fled to Bosnia after being indicted for criminal activities committed during Fico’s time in office between 2012-2018.

The harsh sentences handed down to former Kosovo Liberation Army leaders are the result of a Western attempt to appease Serbia by setting up a war crimes court that prosecuted Kosovo Albanians, not Serbs.

Disturbing video footage published by Slovenian media shows a man pleading "I can't breathe" while police restrain him with a neck hold, after which he suffered a cardiac arrest and died three days later.

Clampdown on LGBTQ+ groups broadens in scope with mass arrests and sweeping internet restrictions also targeting journalists, media outlets and civil society groups.

Fears are growing for the editorial independence of the remaining media outlets that give space to dissenting voices in Aleksandar Vucic’s Serbia, after a change of ownership not long before elections.

In denying schoolchildren sex education, North Macedonia’s government is putting them at risk of greater harm, says campaigner Velimir Saveski.

Frustration with populist, self-centred politicians – and the advent of new election technologies – is bringing an unusual dose of uncertainty to October’s nationwide vote.

Top politicians in Kosovo said the Hague judgment finding ex-President Thaci and three other Kosovo Liberation Army ex-leaders guilty of war crimes was unjust – but a Serbian minister said it proved the KLA was 'criminal'.

Raids, arrests and internet restrictions imposed to ‘protect the family’ have persecuted LGBTQ+ groups while also hitting independent journalists and human rights organisations reporting on the police operation.

Opposition says anti-corruption commission's probe into possible conflict of interest involving one participant in the costly Independence Day events does not go far enough.

Former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci and three fellow ex-guerrilla leaders were given lengthy prison sentences for war crimes including arbitrary detention, torture and murder during the 1998-99 conflict.

Follow our correspondents in Pristina and The Hague for the latest reports and reactions as Kosovo’s ex-President Hashim Thaci and three other wartime Kosovo Liberation Army guerrilla leaders hear the verdict in their trial.

As elections loom in Serbia and Bosnia, Russia is stoking anti-Western nationalism.

Time pressure and a change of government in Hungary could pave the way for the normalisation of relations with Croatia, but compromises will be needed on both sides.

As the European Parliament debates convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic's funeral in Belgrade, Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos says Serbia is failing to respect European values.

President Nicusor Dan condemns ‘unacceptable’ violence after sheep farmers protesting a ban on live exports clash with riot police in front of the government building in Bucharest.