The election of Bujar Spahiu as the new head of the Albanias an Muslim Community was marred by opponents’ allegations that he supports Turkish cleric Fetullah Gulen, who is wanted for arrest by the Ankara government.
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto warned that in addition to the Middle East, there is another front potentially as explosive, which is Kosovo. The interlocutors of Kosovo Online doubt such a scenario but also warn that any radicalization of the situation in the region could lead to new conflicts.
Preface
A geopolitical issue of South-East Europe became of very importance for scholars, policymakers, and researchers with the question of the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire as one of the most crucial features of the beginning of the 20th century in European history. A graduate collapse of the one-time great empire was accelerated and followed by competition and struggle by both, the European Great Powers and the Balkan national states, upon the territorial inheritance of it. While the European Great Powers had the aim to obtain new spheres of political-economic influence in South-East Europe, followed by the task to establish a new balance of power in the continent, a total collapse of the Ottoman state was seen by small Balkan nations as the unique historical opportunity to enlarge the territories of their national-states by the unification of all ethnolinguistic compatriots from the Ottoman Empire with the motherland. The creation of a single national state, composed of all ethnographic and historic “national” lands, was in the eyes of the leading Balkan politicians as a final stage of national awakening, revival, and liberation of their nations which started at the turn of the 19th century on the ideological basis of the German romanticist nationalism expressed in a formula: “One Language-One Nation-One State”.[1]
As Bosnia and Herzegovina prepares to take on greater responsibility for migration management, one of the main challenges remains that of guaranteeing people on the move adequate and dignified reception conditions
As Bosnia and Herzegovina prepares to take on greater responsibility in managing migration, one of the main challenges remains ensuring adequate and dignified reception of migrants.
Analysis: Isaac Herzog’s visits to Albania and Serbia underscore Israel’s expanding ties with the Balkans amid global isolation due to its war on Gaza.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog concluded a historic first visit to Albania last week, following a similarly significant trip to Serbia, where both countries agreed to pursue a free trade agreement.
The Western Balkans occupies an important place in European geopolitics due to its strategic position as a bridge between East and West. This region, which includes countries such as Kosovo and Albania, has a rich history as a crucial crossroads for trade and cultural routes that connect Europe with Asia and the Middle East. Its ethnic and cultural diversity, coupled with its turbulent history, has made the Western Balkans a significant arena for geopolitical influences from major powers.
Documents obtained by BIRN show that EU Frontex officers deployed to Bulgaria’s border with Turkey are being intimidated into silence in the face of pushbacks and brutality against migrants and refugees, prompting warnings that the agency’s credibility is on the line.
The leaders of Kosovo and Serbia have learned how to play the West. To restore credibility, the EU and the United States should draw clear red lines and respond firmly when these are crossed.
The promise of EU membership was once the silver bullet for resolving all territorial and security issues in the Balkans. That is less and less the case these days. And there is no better proof than the continuing drama involving Kosovo and Serbia.
The relations between Turkey and Greece have never been normal. The legacy of Mongol Turkish conquest of Greece in the fifteenth century poisons all connections between Turks and Greeks. The Greeks remember their Turkish oppressors like other barbarians who invaded their country. They fought hard and long to free themselves from the tyranny of the Turks. Moslem Turks, however, remember they live on land they stole from the Greeks. They also remember their empire in Southeastern Europe and the Middle East and want to recreate it.
He said that the Ukrainian Conflict was a “red pill” for him and elaborated on the ten ways in which it opened his eyes to reality.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban elaborated on the global systemic transition and his country’s grand strategy within it during a lengthy speech at the Balvanyos Free Summer University and Student Camp over the weekend. The over 11,000-word English transcript was published on Monday, which the present piece will summarize for the reader’s convenience. It began with him reaffirming that it’s his Christian duty to promote peace and mocking the EU for its Orwellian “war is peace” mantra.