Balkans

Boris Tadic lost his presidential post in 2012 and has been demonized by his successors ever since – but despite growing irrelevancy, he’s still eyeing another starring role. “We will see each other in some new movie,” Boris Tadic said in May 2012 after losing the presidential race to Tomislav …

For years on, Socialist chief Edi Rama and Democratic Party boss Lulzim Basha face each other again in a parliamentary election – and not much has changed in the meantime, except the slogans. As Albania heads towards parliamentary elections on April 25, Socialist Party chief and Prime Minister Edi Rama …

After the latest in a decade-long series of unsuccessful attempts to pass a law banning the denial of the Srebrenica genocide, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s top international official could take action to impose legislation from above. At a session last week of the Bosnian parliament’s House of Peoples, Serb and Croat …

A report funded by the government of Bosnia’s Serb-dominated Republika Srpska entity claims Serbs were subjected to ethnic cleansing in wartime Sarajevo, but its allegations differ from facts established by courts about crimes during the siege. The allegations in the report published this month by the Commission for Investigating the …

There is no legislation preventing freed war criminals from being elected to office or appointed to a public service job in Bosnia and Herzegovina – but experts warn that the situation causes fear among war victims and undermines the rule of law. etails of the crimes of Blagoje Simic, a …

Authorities look determined to equip the Balkan country’s outdated military with modern weapon systems – even if some query the cost in a time of economic difficulty. NATO’s newest member state, North Macedonia, which joined the alliance last year, is on the way to modernising its military, though doing so …

In 2018, Albanian prosecutors dropped a money laundering probe into Ylli Didani. Less than two years later, he was arrested in the US on charges of trafficking significant amounts of cocaine to Europe and laundering the proceeds. At first glance, Michigan resident Ylli Didani was a successful businessman with stakes …

Serbs who fought for Moscow-backed militias in the conflict in eastern Ukraine say they are ready to take up arms again as a massive Russian military build-up on the border raises fears of more violence. As the simmering conflict in Ukraine heats up again, there have been indications that volunteer …

The explosion was massive, blowing out windows of houses kilometers away, leaving a smoldering crater in the eastern Czech forest, not far from the border with Slovakia. The blast, on October 16, 2014, destroyed a cache of ammunition and related weaponry. The bodies of two men who worked at the …

Top foreign affairs officials of Israel, Greece, Cyprus and the United Arab Emirates meet in Cyprus. Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi met April 16 in Paphos, Cyprus with Cypriot, Greek and Emirati officials in the first such meeting of its kind. Ashkenazi met in person with Cypriot Foreign Minister Nikos …