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World Balkans

Balkans

INTERVIEW Gojković-Arbutina: The non-governmental organizations in R. Srpska will be designated foreign agents by law

Criminalizing once again the insult and slander, designating all non-governmental organizations that receive foreign donations (including the organizations working in journalism) as “agents of foreign influence” and establishing a Media Register, where the state decides who may or may not perform a journalistic activity. These...

Interview: Eurovision sensation Joker Out discuss their creative process, touring and more

Slovenian band Joker out, reached a sudden rise to fame after their performance on this year's Eurovision Song Contest and have followed up their success by heading on a big European tour. Although they started off with the classic high-school-band story, today they are...

First-instance verdict in Štrpci Case overturned – trial restored

On 30 October 2023, the Court of Appeal in Belgrade issued a decision annulling the first-instance verdict in the Štrpci Case and returning the case for retrial. The Humanitarian Law Center considers it inadmissible that thirty years after the abduction and murder of twenty civilians in Štrpci,...

Greece won’t consent to Albania’s EU accession if there is no progress regarding Beleri

Greece will not consent to the next stage in Albania's EU accession talks if there is no progress on the matter of the elected mayor of Himare, Fredi Beleri, Greek diplomatic sources reiterated in Brussels on Tuesday, writes Greek news agency ANA-MPA. The same sources...

Germany, Slovenia aim to push EU accession for the Western Balkans

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and her Slovenian counterpart Tanja Fajon want to work together to boost the accession of the Western Balkan countries to the European Union, they said at talks in Ljubljana on Tuesday, writes German news agency DPA. "It is our common...

NMacedonia’s FM Osmani: Russia destabilizes the Western Balkans with visible steps

Bujar Osmani, the current Chairman of the OSCE and Minister of Foreign Affairs of North Macedonia, said today that the Russian Federation is a factor of destabilization in the Western Balkans region. Unlike the US and EU support for N.Macedonia and the entire region,...

The Battleground: Now They’re Into Crypto – Montenegro Opens the Door

It was just a matter of time. Montenegro has been a foreign money magnet since the Yugoslav wars ended, especially since it gained independence in 2006, writes Natalie Sarkic-Todd, in „The Battleground“ Below Meta.mk News Agency republishes the article: The Balkan state is a low-tax, low-cost euro...

The Bots Must be Crazy – Super special, fans and haters

Printscreen from the online campaign for positive promotion of the party bots in Serbia | Source: Instagram profile of Aleksandar Vučić   Someone is a proud political party bot, while another is praising the party leader and attacking his opponents, under the threat of losing his/her...

“Russia Days” in Skopje and Sofia, Bulgarian MFA Responds to Spreading Disinformation by the Russian Ambassador

The Russian embassies in Skopje and Sofia recently celebrated the National Holiday of the Russian Federation “Russia Day” by organizing receptions in both capitals thereby sending scandalous messages regarding the Russian military aggression in Ukraine. Today, the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs was forced to...

Malicious meddling in Kosovo’s media sphere

This article by Ardit Kika was originally produced for and published by Kosovo 2.0 as part of Western Balkans Anti-Disinformation Hub project. It has been republished here with permission.   Serbia, Russia and China are the main disseminators of disinformation in Kosovo and about Kosovo. Serbian-speaking...

The last judgement by IRMCT’s Appeals Chamber establishes the participation of Serbia in the ex-YU wars

The Appeals Chamber of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) passed a judgment on the case against two former leaders of the State Security Service (SDB) of the Republic of Serbia’s Ministry of the Interior - Jovica Stanišić and Franko Simatović –...

Journalists from Serbian “Krik” sentenced for publishing an article listing subjects that sue them

Serbian website Krik.rs, known for the large number of investigative stories and investigative journalism awards, but also as a critic of the government, was sentenced by the High Court in Belgrade for publishing an article listing the lawsuits against its newsroom. These lawsuits, as described...

Glorification and support for the teenage murderer – How TikTok content presented the massacre in Serbia?

Author: Goshe Nikolov “Only a genius can kill 9 young persons; he is a genius”. This is a statement from the social network TikTok, written above the photographs of 13-year old K.K. from Serbia, accused for murdering a total of 9 persons – eight students and...

Turkey ahead of elections: From promises of free internet for youth to political raki commercials

"Promise for you! 5 GB monthly internet will be free for young people," is a message on one of many billboards on the streets of Istanbul placed by opposition candidate Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu ahead of the Turkish presidential elections scheduled for May 14. Recep Tayyip...

The Battleground: Getting the Balkans Wrong

The Western Balkans are notoriously difficult to fathom. The evolving regional map of countries, borders, ethnicities and faiths is so complex that it requires more preparation to cover than other parts of Europe, writes Natalie Sarkic-Todd in The Battleground. Below Meta.mk News Agency republishes the...

The influence of Bulgaria on back azimuth

Unlike the influence of Russia and China in North Macedonia that – to a large extent – is disseminated on the basis of positive identification and desired and/or shared values, we might say that the influence realized by Bulgaria is based on narratives overflowing...

Zero benefits for Albania from China’s Belt and Road Initiative

In 2017, Albania signed a cooperation agreement with China in the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). It was conceived as an attempt to enhance bilateral cooperation in the areas of infrastructure, production capacity, tourism, and agriculture. Six years later, very little...

Wagner recruitment of volunteers in the region neither confirmed, nor denied

The paramilitary group Wagner, by means of a paid announcement on 5th January on Russia Today Balkan in Serbian language, called for all potential volunteers from Serbia to join the war in Ukraine, writes Truthmeter.mk. Under the content-sharing agreement between Truthmeter.mk and Meta.mk, we republish...

MP Abrashi disseminated an unverified document claiming Serbia is “mobilizing”

The Vetëvendosje (LVV) MP Artan Abrashi has disseminated an unverified document on his Facebook account, claiming that the Serbs are mobilizing. According to him, in the document issued by the Ministry of Interior of Serbia, a warning is given to the Serbian army and...

The future of mass surveillance in Serbia?

This article was written by Ana Toskić Cvetinović, executive director of the civil society organization Partners for Democratic Change  Serbia, a member of the Increasing Civic Engagement in the Digital Agenda (ICEDA) network. An edited version is republished by Global Voices with permission. Under...