Category: Balkans
Balkans 25.07.20 | 15:29

Turkey and Greece row over reconversion of Hagia Sophia to mosque

Turkey and Greece criticized each other on Saturday after the first Muslim prayers were held at Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia since its reconversion to a mosque. The Foreign Ministry in Ankara condemned Athens for its “hostility towards Islam and Turkey.” It rebuked Greece’s government and parliament...
Balkans 24.07.20 | 19:29

After their failed summit, US tries to coordinate with the EU on the issue of Kosovo

US Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Philip Reeker is in Brussels for meetings with EU envoy Miroslav Lajcak, over the dispute between Kosovo and Serbia. The US were caught flat footed when the summit between the two countries they were organizing without much coordination with the EU collapsed...
Balkans 24.07.20 | 11:45

Hagia Sophia opens for Muslim prayers after 86 years as a museum

The Hagia Sophia opened for Muslim prayers on Friday for the first time in 86 years after the Istanbul museum was reconverted into a mosque by a controversial presidential decree. The azan resounded calling Muslim worshippers to prayer, as hundreds of faithful crowded outside the former 6th-century Byzantine...
Balkans 24.07.20 | 09:53

New Croatian government voted in

After a debate that lasted the whole day, the Croatian 151-seat parliament on Thursday evening gave a vote of confidence in Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and his second cabinet. Thus, 76 MPs, who make up the ruling majority, voted for the new government, and 59 voted against, with no abstentions. After...
Balkans 23.07.20 | 10:27

Expert teams in Brussels working on Belgrade-Pristina dialogue

Expert teams from Serbia and Kosovo will continue their work today and tomorrow in Brussels on the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue. Today, the experts will discuss the topics that were started at the first high-level physical meeting. Kosovo and Serbia have been invited to send their experts to continue addressing...
Balkans 22.07.20 | 10:41

Montenegro declares a state of epidemic due to increase of COVID-19 incidence

Montenegro’s COVID-19 crisis management team on Tuesday declared a state of epidemic following a resurgence in the reported cases of this infection. Therefore, wearing protective masks is mandatory in all open and enclosed public spaces except on beaches and in national parks provided that social distancing...
Balkans 22.07.20 | 10:14

The coronavirus doesn’t stop migrants from going to Italy through the Balkan route

From Idomeni, migrants attempt to cross the border to Macedonia. At night, groups of people attempt to climb on commercial trains as blind passengers or they pierce holes in the wall along the border at night, online portal ‘InfoMigrants’ reports. “They jump on the train at the risk of being electrocuted...
Balkans 20.07.20 | 21:22

Dua Lipa’s nationalist post inflamed the internet

Kosovo born star Dua Lipa continues to rile the internet a day after her message that showed the map of Greater Albania, incorporating parts of Macedonia, Greece, Serbia and Montenegro. The map, widely used by Albanian nationalists, was accompanied by the word Autochtonous, meant to declare that the...
Balkans 19.07.20 | 12:05

Seven protesters arrested during rallies in Bulgaria

Bulgarian police arrested seven protesters yesterday evening, during the tenth opposition rally held in the capital Sofia and in other cities. The arrests were made for disturbing the otherwise mostly orderly protests. Protesters demand resignations from the Boyko Borisov Government and the Public Prosecutor...
Balkans 16.07.20 | 18:36

Albania’s President Ilir Meta congratulates Albanian parties on high representation in Macedonian Parliament

Albanian President Ilir Meta has extended a message of congratulations to Macedonia on administering free and democratic elections. Meta congratulated parties of ethnic Albanians on their result at the elections. Congratulations to North Macedonia on the free, democratic and competitive elections. Many...
Balkans 14.07.20 | 20:46

Turkey allows visitors to Hagia Sophia outside prayers, icons remain

Istanbul’s iconic Hagia Sophia will open to visitors outside Muslim prayers, and Christian symbols and mosaics can remain in the building, Turkey’s religious authority Diyanet said on Tuesday. Christian icons at the UNESCO World Heritage site could be covered by curtains or obscured using lighting,...
Balkans 14.07.20 | 11:44

Greek Government joins patriarch Bartholomew in his push over Hagia Sophia

The Greek Government joined the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in his opposition to the Turkish decision to repurpose the Hagia Sophia cathedral into a mosque. The cathedral was declared a museum by the Turkish authorities in the 1930-ies, but now under President Erdogan it is again turned into a mosque. Greek...
Balkans 12.07.20 | 18:27

The Balkans in shock, Croatian analyst comments on Zaev’s racket worth 6 million euros

The Macedonian public is shocked, but the Balkans are also shocked after a video was posted on YouTube showing Zoran Zaev arranging a racket worth 6 million euros. Ivan Brodic, a Croatian journalist and analyst, also commented on the situation, wondering whether the money ended up with Zaev? What is...
Balkans 11.07.20 | 09:26

Protesters in Belgrade break into Serbian parliament

A group of violent demonstrators on Friday night again clashed with police in front of the Serbian parliament, but also attacked numerous reporters and anyone filming the scene. The third spate of violence in four nights of protests sparked on Tuesday when President Aleksandar Vucic’s announced a long...
Balkans 11.07.20 | 09:21

Erdogan signs decree to reopen Hagia Sophia for Islamic prayers

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has signed a decree ordering Istanbul’s landmark Hagia Sophia be handed over to the country’s religious authority and reopened for Islamic prayers. Erdogan shared the decree on Twitter on Friday with the caption “congratulations” just over an hour after...
Balkans 08.07.20 | 11:45

23 people arrested, 43 officers injured in Belgrade protest

Serbian police said on Wednesday they have arrested 23 people in riots triggered by the return of Covid-19 restrictions the night before in which 43 officers were injured. Several police vehicles were also torched and totally burned out, police director Vladimir Rebic told the state broadcaster RTS. Violence...
Balkans 08.07.20 | 09:42

Return of Covid curfew sparks protest in Belgrade

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic’s announcement of a weekend curfew because of the deteriorating epidemiological situation in the country sparked a protest in Belgrade on Tuesday night, with a group of demonstrators breaking into parliament. Around 1,000 people gathered in front of the legislature...
Balkans 05.07.20 | 23:26

HDZ wins solid victory in Croatia elections

The Croatian conservative HDZ party is projected to win big in the general elections. Despite facing a strong challenge from the right, in the form of the DPMS party, HDZ still managed to win projected 68 seats. This would bring Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic close to forming the next Government. His...
Balkans 30.06.20 | 22:44

Greece extends entry ban for Macedonian nationals

Macedonia is not on the list of countries for which Greece will allow entry as of July 1, considering it follows the EU recommendation regarding the list of third countries, MIA reports from Athens. “While following the European recommendation, Greece enlarges the options for entry in the country for...
Balkans 30.06.20 | 17:53

Montenegro opens last chapter in EU entry talks

Montenegro on Tuesday opened the last chapter in its EU accession negotiations and has to date closed three. The accession negotiations are divided into 35 policy chapters but negotiations are held on 33. As of today, Montenegro has opened all 33 and closed only three. Today it opened chapter 8, on market...
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