China’s granular engagement with the Western Balkans is inconspicuous, has the capacity to exploit differences between national policies, and can harness local entrepreneurship to develop ties with the country
The impact of geopolitical investments in the Balkans The Think Tank and Civil Society Forum will be live streamed on ECFR’s YouTube channel from Sofia
Regardless of the result of the US election, it is up to the EU to show robust leadership and gain credibility in the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia
Voter fraud and voter intimidation appear in many forms in Bosnia, and are becoming especially visible ahead of upcoming local elections in November
There is no obvious reason why Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic would turn his back on a relationship with China from which he draws a great deal of political capital
Supporters of Western integration for Montenegro may look hopefully at the smallest – and pro-European – member of the new coalition. But wider forces are likely to overwhelm it.
debate with Albin Kurti, former Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo
The indictment for war crimes against Kosovo President Hassim Thaci helpfully upends the poorly conceived US initiative to reconcile Serbia and Kosovo. But it fatally delegitimates Kosovo’s current leadership.
China has not embedded itself in the Western Balkans as much as it might have done – and may even be looking back on the 2010s as a wasted decade
It is the EU’s responsibility to normalise relations between Kosovo and Serbia in the long term. Therefore, the bloc should set the principles of, and drive, the dialogue between the countries.