‘Still needed’: Nato marks 20 years in Kosovo (The Guardian)
A few thousand troops keep a low-key presence, but with western attention fitful, how long for? Twenty years after Nato ground troops first entered Kosovo at the end of a 78-day aerial bombardment, 3,500 troops from the military alliance remain on the ground in the fledgling nation where the conflict is still yet to be […]
Read More →Turkey’s gift of a mosque sparks fears of ‘neo-Ottomanism’ in Kosovo (The Guardian)
It is six years since Islamic leaders and government officials laid the cornerstone of Pristina’s new central mosque – a slab of stone now hidden beneath weeds in a parking lot. Pulling back the weeds reveals it is covered with bright red graffiti – death threats to Kosovo’s chief mufti, along with the words: “No […]
Read More →Two Kosovan doctors jailed for selling harvested kidneys (The Guardian)
A court has jailed two Kosovan doctors for harvesting kidneys and selling the organs to wealthy patients for up to €100,000 (£88,000). https://bit.ly/2s6O8kC
Read More →No time soon: EU dashes membership hopes of Balkan states (The Guardian)
Concerns over rule of law and corruption, plus enlargement fatigue, meant the six countries got little from Sofia summit Keep waiting in line, but don’t expect the door to open any time soon. That was the message delivered on Thursday to six Balkan states hoping to join the EU. The six had been invited to […]
Read More →Kosovo’s bitter enemies look to heal old wounds (The Guardian)
In a picturesque village in northern Kosovo, Marko Đurić swigged from a bottle of Gazimestan beer and smiled for the cameras. On a visit to the area a few weeks previously, Đurić had been arrested by special forces, bundled into a police van, and unceremoniously deported. This time, Serbia’s point man for Kosovo issues was […]
Read More →Now is chance for Kosovo deal, says Serbian president – but at what cost? (The Guardian)
Aleksandar Vučić will accept independence only if Serbia gets something concrete in return. When Nato bombed Serbia in 1999, Aleksandar Vučić was information minister, enforcing censorship rules for the country’s president, Slobodan Milošević, who would later be for war crimes. Nearly two decades later, Vučić himself is Serbia’s president. Claiming to have shed many of […]
Read More →Kosovo detains Serbian politician after ‘illegal entry’ into region (The Guardian)
Marko Đurić was seized by special police officers who fired stun grenades to disperse crowd. Air raid sirens have rung out in Serb-dominated northern Kosovo after special police fired stun grenades in a raid to detain a senior Serbian official, raising fresh tensions in the region. Marko Đurić, head of Belgrade’s office for Kosovo and […]
Read More →Ana Brnabić: ‘I do not want to be branded Serbia’s gay PM’ (The Guardian)
The 41-year-old who has never been part of a political party has risen from obscurity and is working to change Belgrade’s image The appointment of Ana Brnabić as Serbia’s prime minister aged 41 was accompanied by the sound of glass ceilings being shattered all around her. Not only is she the first woman to take […]
Read More →In Kosovo, too, there’s a future for a leftist party of economic and social justice (The Guardian)
The UK is not the only country to have experienced a snap election in June. In Kosovo, a coalition between the Democratic party of Kosovo, the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo and the Initiative for Kosovo has finished in first place with 34% of the vote. A victory, but not enough to form a […]
Read More →Russian destabilisation of Balkans rings alarm bells as EU leaders meet (The Guardian)
The European Union needs to be more visible in the western Balkans to counter Russian attempts to destabilise the region, a leading MEP has said, as EU leaders gather for a summit in Brussels on Thursday. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/08/top-mep-says-eu-must-do-more-to-stop-russia-destabilising-balkans
Read More →Rumbling Balkans threaten foreign policy headache for Trump (theguardian)
In Kosovo, Serbia, Bosnia and Montenegro, signs of ethnic tension are on the rise again A familiar billboard face looms large over the shabby streets and squares of the Balkan city of North Mitrovica. “The Serbs stood by him all along!” says the slogan in English beneath the giant image of Donald Trump staring out […]
Read More →Russian experts: “Crimea for Kosovo” deal won’t happen (B92, Vesti, RTS, Sputnik)
Russia will not recognize Kosovo – Moscow does not and never will barter with Serbia’s territorial integrity, say Russian experts. Sputnik is reporting that this reaction came in the wake of claims made by western analysts that “Russia could recognize Kosovo in order to reach a deal with the US.” Russian experts say that such […]
Read More →LINKS
UNMIK
Peacekeeping
UN News Center
From Google News- Montenegrin President Asks for Justice for 1999 Killings of Kosovo Albanians - Balkan Insight 18/04/2024Montenegrin President Asks for Justice for 1999 Killings of Kosovo Albanians Balkan Insight
- IMF cuts Kosovo's 2024 GDP growth projection to 3.8% - SeeNews 18/04/2024IMF cuts Kosovo's 2024 GDP growth projection to 3.8% SeeNews
- New statue of Tony Blair in Kosovo town honours 'Tonibler' cult - The Independent 17/04/2024New statue of Tony Blair in Kosovo town honours 'Tonibler' cult The Independent
- Montenegrin President Asks for Justice for 1999 Killings of Kosovo Albanians - Balkan Insight 18/04/2024
Office of the Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General
Media Sources
