Albanian Language Media:

• COVID – 19: 199 new cases, four new deaths (media)
• Kosovo ensures 500 thousand anti-COVID vaccines from Pfizer (media)
• Mustafa ironizes with Osmani’s statement on her eventual return to LDK (RTK)
• Osmani outlines political future (Prishtina Insight)
• Dialogue with Serbia on 2020 Seen as Failure in Kosovo (Exit.al)
• Assembly extraordinary session for sending KSF on missions with Iowa National Guard, today (media)
• Hoxhaj: Presevo Valley will be the main issue in the dialogue with Serbia (media)
• AKR to compete in elections with LDK? (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• 19 new cases of Covid-19, one death registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo (Radio KIM)
• Vucic: Forthcoming not an easy year of fight with coronavirus, pressures on the issues related to Kosovo and Republika Srpska (Tanjug, Radio Mitrovica sever)
• Selakovic: Belgrade for the continuation of a serious and effective dialogue (Tanjug, Kosovo Online, TV Pink)
• Stano: The dialogue continues despite the elections in Kosovo; Belgrade and Pristina to cooperate on vaccines (Kontakt plus radio, Tanjug)
• Tanaskovic: It would be no surprise that Pristina bypasses Washington agreement (N1, Sputnik)
• “Diary of a Decani monk 1903-1906“ published – original records and documents from the monastery archives (KoSSev)
• Sava Janjic: To reconstruct shrines destroyed after the war (Kosovo-online)
• Yet another complaint filed on decision to ban Arlov from entering Kosovo (Radio KIM)

Opinion:

• EU cannot ignore history in Balkans enlargement (euobserver.com)

International:

• Flawed Cybersecurity Is a Ticking Time Bomb for the Balkans (foreignpolicy.com)

Humanitarian/Development:

• Year in Pictures: 2020 in the Balkans and Central Europe (Balkan Insight)
• Heartwarming harmony as Balkan tensions set aside in Croatia’s hour of need after deadly earthquake (euronews.com)

 

 

Albanian Language Media 

 

COVID – 19: 199 new cases, four new deaths (media)

199 new cases of COVID – 19 and four deaths from the virus were recorded in the last 24 hours in Kosovo. 430 persons have recovered from the virus during this period. There are 7,600 active cases of COVID – 19 in Kosovo.

Kosovo ensures 500 thousand anti-COVID vaccines from Pfizer (media)

Kosovo’s Minister of Health Armend Zemaj shared today with the citizens information that as part of the concrete commitments for the provision of the vaccines against COVID-19, Kosovo managed to obtain 500,000 vaccines from Pfizer company.  

The confirmation was given by the Pfizer representatives during a virtual meeting held today.

“As we informed you in the past, the Ministry of Health has been engaged for months in many directions to ensure the vaccine against COVID-19, with the intention of fulfilling the obligations that we have towards the citizens and safeguarding their public health. The government of Kosovo and the Ministry of Health remain committed to the citizens to ensure their protection through comprehensive vaccination against COVID-19,” notes a press release.

Mustafa ironizes with Osmani’s statement on her eventual return to LDK (RTK)

Isa Mustafa, leader of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) ironized with the statement of the Acting President Vjosa Osmani that her eventual return to LDK would happen if its current leadership left.

“I do not see it reasonable to comment whatever comes into the mind of someone. It may occur to someone among us to become the queen of the United Kingdom, if Elisabeth withdraws,” Mustafa said.

Osmani outlines political future (Prishtina Insight)

In an exclusive interview for BIRN, acting president Vjosa Osmani discussed her new citizens initiative, her relationship with Vetevendosje and the future of Kosovo-US ties under the Biden administration.

In an interview with BIRN’s Jeta Xharra on Monday, Kosovo’s acting president Vjosa Osmani elaborated on her political future, following her split from the Democratic League of Kosovo, LDK, in June. 

The former LDK prime ministerial candidate told Xharra that she will run in the upcoming elections as part of what she describes as a citizens initiative. “Our aim was not to build a political party but a citizens initiative, which will put Kosovo citizens at the centre,” she said. 

The initiative is yet to be named but has already unveiled its campaign slogan: “GUXO” (“to dare”). Explaining the slogan, Osmani told Xharra that the state of Kosovo itself is a result of political daring, adding that “the basic trait that everyone needs in politics is courage.”

The acting president also revealed that she is still yet to receive a full decision from the Constitutional Court that would give her the legal basis to declare Kosovo’s next parliamentary elections. Osmani met with leaders of political parties in late December following the court’s announcement of its annulment of the election of the Hoti Government, and has stated that the date of the election will be set immediately after receiving the full decision.

In terms of collaboration with other parties in the upcoming elections, Osmani revealed that the only party leader she has met with thus far is Albin Kurti of Vetevendosje. “We meet from time to time,” she said. “But so far we have only discussed a willingness to cooperate, to discuss topics, priorities.”

Osmani underlined that she and Vetevendosje have different ideological roots, but that this does not necessarily preclude cooperation. “It is important to emphasize that I still believe in the political values of the centre-right,” she said. “However this is not the end of the world and there are many democratic countries where centre-right and centre-left can work together, Germany for example.”

Osmani also did not completely rule out a return to LDK in the future, though added that a complete regime change is required within the party. “Let the presidency of LDK leave, and then we can talk about the possibility of returning,” she said.

Addressing Kosovo-US relations, Osmani spoke of the need to sit down with the new Biden administration and review the agreement signed in September under the presidency of Donald Trump.

“We need to talk to the Biden team to see what they think about those issues, which were reached as pledges not agreements,” she said. “Certainly it is important that US companies invest here, but there are questions over issues such as the Ujmani [lake] for which we need to see what Biden’s position is.”

The acting president added that she had an open mind about the longevity of the agreement and its impacts. “I am not prejudiced,” Osmani said. “I am not one of those who think that the new administration will just throw the agreement in the bin.”

She also believes that Kosovo should have an ally in Biden in regard to the implementation of the Association of Serb-majority Municipalities, principles for which were agreed in 2015 but were later declared contrary to the spirit of the Kosovo Constitution by the Constitutional Court.  

“Kosovo as an independent and functional state is not only a project of the Kosovo people, but also an American project, and I am convinced that [the Biden administration] is committed to maintaining a functional Kosovo,” she said.

“With the agreement signed in 2015, Kosovo does not remain functional,” Osmani added. “So, what we will do is to try and convince them that [the agreement] is harmful for our joint project, and that anything that happens has to be in full accordance with the Kosovo constitution.”

Dialogue with Serbia on 2020 Seen as Failure in Kosovo (Exit.al)

The dialogue process between Kosovo and Serbia during 2020 is seen as failure, the Prishtina- based news agency Kosovo Press writes.

Arber Fetahu from the Group for Legal and Political Studies says that regarding the dialogue 2020 was a year of discussions, not of a tangible result.

“Apart from the return of the two sides to the table, we did not see anything significant and big from this dialogue. Many topics were opened, many issues were discussed, including the technical topics of the agreements reached earlier,” Fetahu told Kosova Press.

He adds that the decision of the Constitutional Court for the country to go in snap elections, makes the future of the dialogue unclear.

“It is being reconfirmed that the end of the dialogue is unclear, its future is unclear,” he said.

However, the ruling Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) says 2020 brought an “historical” deal between Kosovo and Serbia, referring to the Washington agreement.

The outgoing Prime Minister coming from LDK, Avdullah Hoti and the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic signed separate pledges titled “Economic Normalization” on September 4, in the White House, each prefaced by a congratulatory note by President Trump, who also called it “an historical deal”.

“The conclusions from that [Washington] agreement were almost minimal, compared to the expectations of the Kosovo side,” Fetahu said.

Fitore Pacolli, a Parliament Member of Vetevendosje Movement, told Kosova Press she was pessimistic about the implementation of the Washington agreement.

“We do not expect anything with this agreement signed in Washington, we expect a new start with the new President of the United State of America,” Pacolli said.

The Kosovo-Serbia dialogue, resumed in July following a break of about two years.

During 2020 there were two meetings between the outgoing Prime Minister Hoti and Serbian President Vucic in Brussels, one in Washington and one virtual meeting at the Paris Summit. While 6 meetings took place at the experts level.

Blerta Deliu, an MP from the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) said that the country lost “the historical opportunity” for a final agreement with Serbia during 2020.

“2021 should be the year when we end this long marathon of dialogue discussions which has taken a lot of time and energy from Kosovo, and a final agreement binding both parties with mutual recognition that is our main condition, is necessary, then also a seat in the United Nations,” Deliu said.

An issue that has been hindering the process of the dialogue between two countries during the last months, is establishing Association of Serb- majority Municipalities, on which two parties have different approaches.

The ASM was part of the 2013 Brussels Agreement between Kosovo and Serbia. It stipulated that Serb majority municipalities in Kosovo will be able to form a self-governing association with full governing power in many areas, including education, health, economic development, urban planning.

In 2015, they agreed on principles for the establishment of the ASM. In December 2015, Kosovo’s Constitutional Court ruled parts of the 2013 agreement unconstitutional, and the establishment of the association stalled.

The Kosovo government insisted that the ASM is a closed topic, according to the 2013 agreement. While Serbia wants it renegotiated and implemented in a short time.

See at: http://bit.ly/3ofSelH

Assembly extraordinary session for sending KSF on missions with Iowa National Guard, today (media)

At the request of the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Mr. Avdullah Hoti, today from 18:00 an Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of Kosovo will be held, with a single item on the agenda: Making the decision to co-send the contingent of the Kosovo Security Force on missions abroad with the Iowa National Guard.

“Based on the invitation of the United States of America, the Government of the Republic of Kosovo on December 31, 2021, has approved the decision to co-send the contingent of the Kosovo Security Force on missions abroad with the Iowa National Guard. This decision was sent to the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo with the proposal to send the KSF contingent in missions to support regional stability and peacekeeping operations, under US Central Command.

The decision is based on the memorandum that the Government of the Republic of Kosovo has signed with the Embassy of the United States of America, for sending the Kosovo Security Force on missions abroad together with the Iowa National Guard,” reads a press release issued by the Office of the Prime Minister. 

Hoxhaj: Presevo Valley will be the main issue in the dialogue with Serbia (media)

Acting leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and party’s candidate for Prime Minister Enver Hoxhaj, said they will compete with the best team and program in the upcoming elections.

Hoxhaj said at a press conference that the weak point of his political party is the Presevo Valley, and made a range of promises for Albanians there. He added that the issue of the Valley and the rights of the Albanians there will be the main point of the dialogue with Serbia. He also said that they will have two candidates for MPs from Presevo Valley in their list.

“If Milosevic went down 21 years ago as a regime in Serbia and his end in Kosovo came in June 1999, if there is a part in Yugoslavia where Milosevic’s policy continues, that is Presheva. We are concerned about the situation there, there is extreme economic discrimination there. PDK has paid attention to the Presvo Valley at all positions that it held,” he said.

He stressed further that they will endorse a special law to support Albanians from Presheva financially, politically, economically and culturally.

Hoxhaj said they will amend the Law on citizenship and all Presevo Valley Albanians who want Kosovo citizenship, will be able to obtain it.

“There will be increased quota for Presheva students. We will open four new border points to increase movement between Kosovo and eastern Kosovo. We will create a five million Euros fund for return of Preshevans,” Hoxhaj said.

Asked if the intention is to unite the Valley with Kosovo, Hoxhaj said former President Hashim Thaci’s position was to unite the Valley with Kosovo without compromising the integrity and borders of Kosovo.

“While my position is that it is very important to conclude Kosovo’s statehood. I do not have competition, and only the phone calls that I have received and which I do not make public, show there is support of the international partners on who should lead the government,” Hoxhaj said.

Speaking about eventual coalitions, he said they have not discussed the issue yet, and that PDK’s position is to compete with its identity and logo. 

AKR to compete in elections with LDK? (media)

Sources of Gazeta Blic confirmed that the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AKR) managed to reach an agreement to compete in the upcoming elections with the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK). According to this news portal, it is a matter of days when this agreement will become formal.  

“We have an agreement with LDK. We will have at least ten candidates for MPs for Kosovo Assembly in the joint list,” the source said.

Gazeta Blic further informed that AKR leader Behgjet Pacolli, current MP Mirlinda Sopi Krasniqi, Jetlir Zyberaj, Fatmir Matoshi and Islam Pacolli, are among the names expected to be in the competing list.

 

 

Serbian Language Media

 

19 new cases of Covid-19, one death registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo (Radio KIM)

19 new cases of Covid-19 and one death were registered in the Serb-populated areas in Kosovo, the Crisis Committee of Mitrovica North announced today, Radio KIM reports.

At the same time 54 people have completed a two-week isolation period.

Deceased person was from Zvecan.

A total of 83 samples have been tested, and 19 cases were positive. The new cases were registered as follows: six in Zvecan, five in Mitrovica North, two in Leposavic, one in Zubin Potok, two in Gnjilane, two in Strpce and one in Priluzje.

At the moment there are 506 active cases.

A total of 86 persons have died in the Serbian areas in Kosovo since the outbreak of the pandemic.  

Vucic: Forthcoming not an easy year of fight with coronavirus, pressures on the issues related to Kosovo and Republika Srpska (Tanjug, Radio Mitrovica sever)

The President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic said today that a difficult year was ahead, with many challenges, which is a more important issue for him at this moment than the presidential elections, reported Tanjug.

Asked about media reports on the future presidential candidates Marinika Tepic and Dejan Bodiroga, Vucic said that it was not up to him to deal with it.

"For the next Christmas day, you can ask me about the elections. Not an easy year is ahead of us of fighting with the coronavirus, pressures around Kosovo and Metohija and the RS. Not an easy economic year is ahead, because everyone will ask the state for help. And the state is not a pot, and Serbia gave the most help, proportionally according to its budget. Certainly, a difficult year awaits us, there are many challenges ahead of us," he said. 

He said that the candidates mentioned were "very serious, and that it is possible that between the two of them hides one who would go to the second round, so they will have to decide among themselves." He added also that the ruling party will have ''of course, an opponent, who will try to oppose the flyover from party to party and any kind of return to the past, at a time when hospitals, highways and everything else were not built," he underlined.

Selakovic: Belgrade for the continuation of a serious and effective dialogue (Tanjug, Kosovo Online, TV Pink)

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia Nikola Selakovis stated that "Belgrade is ready at any moment to continue the dialogue on Kosovo and Metohija, which will have concrete results and lead to the implementation of the agreement, but it is not a party on which depends whether the negotiations will take place or not," reported Tanjug news agency. 

Selakovic said that there was political instability in Pristina and that he was not sure that at this moment anyone could say what the plan was for the continuation of the dialogue on Kosovo.

He expressed hope that resolving the political situation in Pristina would enable the continuation of an effective dialogue which, as he said, would have concrete results that would be feasible, and a dialogue in which would be realized what was agreed.

"It is a difficult and complex issue, there are more factors that we cannot influence than we can, but for us as a state it is important that we are for the continuation of a serious dialogue at all times," Selakovic told TV Pink.

He reminded that Belgrade fulfilled all the obligations from the dialogue agreed under the auspices of the EU, and that Pristina did not form the Community of Serbian Municipalities (ZSO) after more than 2,800 days.

Asked whether the Washington agreement will be valid after the arrival of the new administration in the White House, Selakovic said that the US was a serious country that does not change its political course so easily and that he was of the opinion that there will be no deviations from that agreement.

Selakovic stated that the pandemic of the coronavirus disrupted not only the established course of international relations, but also shook the internal political scenes of all countries in the world, but also the EU.

He is convinced that at some point Washington will also deal with our region, because, as he says, there are people in the new administration who dealt with the Balkans 25 years ago.

"How and when something that is important for us will take place, we will see in the next period, it does not depend on us," said Selaković.

He emphasized that the complete diplomatic and political infrastructure of our country should try to present its truth, but also to present serious and important arguments about Kosovo, which are difficult to refute.

"Our arguments are where the Serbs live in Kosovo and Metohija, what are their rights, are they endangered, what guarantees their protection ... It is a small segment of what we should do, and we will do, and of which we will not give up," said Selakovic.

Stano: The dialogue continues despite the elections in Kosovo; Belgrade and Pristina to cooperate on vaccines (Kontakt plus radio, Tanjug)

Work on the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina continues, EU spokesman Peter Stano told Belgrade based agency Tanjug.

When asked by Tanjug how the announced holding of early parliamentary elections in Kosovo, scheduled for the first half of 2021, will affect the process of negotiations between Belgrade and Pristina, Brussels noted that the work on the dialogue continues.

"We will announce the next meetings when the time comes," Stano added.

Earlier, in the context of early elections, the EU said that it would continue to cooperate with "interlocutors in Kosovo" and that they expect Pristina to respect and implement all agreements reached so far.

After the last round of expert talks between Belgrade and Pristina on December 10th, both delegations announced the next meeting at the technical level for the beginning of January in Brussels.

In a statement for Tanjug, EU spokesman Peter Stano called on the authorities in Belgrade and Pristina to work closely together and respect the agreement when it comes to the distribution of vaccines against Covid 19.

"The authorities in Serbia and Kosovo must work closely together in accordance with the relevant agreements from the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue on the movement of goods and the certification of pharmaceutical products," Stano said.

Answering Tanjug's question about the condemnations of the Pristina side that came after the distribution of part of the vaccines that Belgrade procured to the citizens from the north of Kosovo, Stano added that the EU "is still considering the events related to the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines".

Tanaskovic: It would be no surprise that Pristina bypasses Washington agreement (N1, Sputnik)

It would be no surprise at all that Pristina bypasses the Washington agreement and applies to join UNESCO and “in line with fraudster’s logic” overlooks the fact the request for membership would come at the times of embargo on such activities, former Serbia’s Ambassador to UNESCO Darko Tanaskovic said, N1 reports.

The obligation to refrain from the request for membership in international organizations in the Washington Agreement is limited to one year, and the session of the UNESCO General Conference will be held after the expiration of that period, Tanaskovic told Sputnik.

Sputnik recalled that Pristina just announced it would soon prepare everything needed to apply for membership at UNESCO, and that Kosovo Minister of Culture Vlora Dumoshi said it was a political issue and expressed hope Pristina would be successful in it with the help of the international community.

Tanaskovic also said it remains uncertain what stance the new American administration of the President Joe Biden would take regarding the Washington agreement and obligations deriving from it.

That is why, he pointed out, Serbia needs decisively by all means available and convincing arguments to thwart such an attempt of Pristina.

Tanaskovic also said all deadlines should be taken into consideration conditionally, given that Covid-19 pandemic could bring about changes in relation to the usual calendar of UNESCO and its bodies session.

Washington agreement was signed on September 4, 2020.

“Diary of a Decani monk 1903-1906“ published – original records and documents from the monastery archives (KoSSev)

The book “Diary of a Decani monk 1903-1906“ is now available for purchase in the online store of the Visoki Decani Monastery and the bookstores of the Faculty of Theology in Belgrade. The book is available in two languages – Serbian and English, the Visoki Decani Monastery announced, KoSSev portal reports.

According to the monastery’s Facebook post, the diary is a testimony of the life and difficult position of the clergy of the monastery, as well as the Serb people in Metohija.

“Simple and short, dated records of the priestmonk Dionysius shows the attitude of the Muslim Albanian population and the Ottoman authorities toward Decani at a time when the monastery was also under armed guard“, the monastery said in a statement, adding that both Serbs and Albanians visited the monastery at the time, especially during the monastery’s religious celebrations.

At the beginning of the 20th century – as is the case today – foreign diplomats expressed great interest in this medieval monastery, which was frequently visited by Russian, English, Italian and French consuls even at the time.

The book, along with Dionysius’ writings, also contains the travelogue of an Englishwoman Mary Edith Durham from 1904, as well as the photographs shot by Durham and the priestmonk Arsenije.

See more at: https://bit.ly/394v37d

Sava Janjic: To reconstruct shrines destroyed after the war (Kosovo-online)

Abbot of Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) Visoki Decani Monastery Sava Janjic said the work to create a list of locations with SOC shrines destroyed after the war and still in ruins in Kosovo continues, Kosovo-online portal reports.

“Continuing w/list of #Serbian #Orthodox sites destroyed by K/Albanian extremists which STILL lie in ruins. Binač Monastery of St. Gabriel near Gnjilane was destroyed AFTER the 1999 war despite intn’l presence. Perpetrators never brought to justice http://kosovo.net/ebinac.html #Kosovo”, Father Sava wrote on Twitter.

“This story of #Serbian #Orthodox holy sites destroyed AFTER 1999 war & NEVER reconstructed due to various obstacles is a reminder on deliberate strategy to erase Christian roots in the time when hundreds of mosques are being built in #Kosovo & its cultural-ethnic landscape changed”, Father Sava added. 

Yet another complaint filed on decision to ban Arlov from entering Kosovo (Radio KIM)

Lawyer Dejan A. Vasic told Radio KIM that a complaint was filed on the decision to ban Milorad Arlov from Banja Luka (Republic of Srpska, B&H) from entering Kosovo with a proposal to change that decision.

The complaint was filed to the border service of the Kosovo Ministry of Internal Affairs.

“Back in June this year, when the first ban to Milorad Arlov was introduced, I filed a complaint against this decision and sent it to the Kosovo Police Director, Mr. Rashid Qalaj. To this day, I received no response, although the deadline to decide on the complaint was 15 days”, Vasic emphasized.

He also recalled he sent appeals several times to the-then and current director to resolve this issue, as well as a petition of the citizens requesting permission for further work of this well-known humanitarian worker, but without results.

Vasi said he hopes that following recent complaint those responsible would act with more diligence.

 

 

Opinion

 

EU cannot ignore history in Balkans enlargement (euobserver.com)

Few subjects are more obscure than Balkan history. It is a complex accumulation of facts and stories of bloodshed which mean nothing to an outsider unless the violence erupts afresh to offer exciting news stories.

Understandably, only a handful of people could make sense of the recent row between Bulgaria and North Macedonia.

So perhaps it will be helpful to explain the historical background of the row, discuss the reasons for Bulgaria's stubbornness, and the possible way forward.

Put briefly, the Bulgarian government does not want to change Macedonian identity or Macedonian language, as some have said. It wants to clear a huge mass of falsifications and lies which have been generated first by Serbian and then Yugoslav communist propaganda. 

This propaganda was part of the very making of the new socialist republic of Macedonia in 1945 and remained intact after the country's independence in 1991.

Threatened by nearby wars and uncertainties, North Macedonia did not have time to change.

As a result, the explosive mix of ideology, nationalism, and totalitarian methods is still in force today. 

The thing that annoys Bulgarians most is their portrayal as "Tartar, Turkish Mongol fascists, and occupiers".

This is not an obsolete piece of 1950s propaganda. It is a current and very present image constantly projected in countless pieces on Macedonian media: TV stations, newspapers, radio, websites, films, documentaries, etc.

See more at: https://bit.ly/35sL3zh

 

 

International

 

Flawed Cybersecurity Is a Ticking Time Bomb for the Balkans (foreignpolicy.com)

Cyberattacks in North Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey reveal that government defenses are weak—and many NATO members are at risk.

On the night of July 15, 2020, the Balkan nation of North Macedonia was anxiously awaiting the preliminary results of its parliamentary election. Soon after the polls closed, in what was first believed to be a minor technical glitch, the website of the State Election Commission went down.

The polling results were nowhere to be found on the website in the next several hours, as the commission resorted to manually announcing the latest updates on a makeshift YouTube channel. And things didn’t get any better in the late hours of the night.

See more at: https://bit.ly/2LjPLYS

 

 

Humanitarian/Development

 

Year in Pictures: 2020 in the Balkans and Central Europe (Balkan Insight)

Over a chaotic, exhausting and unpredictable year for many people, BIRN has selected photographs from across the region that highlight major political events, social issues, celebrations and commemorations.

Like in the rest of the world, this year the region has been hit by a coronavirus pandemic that limited many social and political events. As health problems piled up, other problems did not go away, resulting in widespread discontent and protests.

Under the conditions of the “new normal“, however, life continued: elections were held in several states, important diplomatic meetings were organised and major anniversaries were commemorated.

BIRN presents its selection of photos of some of the events and processes that marked a difficult year.

See at: https://bit.ly/35aNJRY

Heartwarming harmony as Balkan tensions set aside in Croatia’s hour of need after deadly earthquake (euronews.com)

It's a quarter of a century since peace ended years of bloodshed in what used to be Yugoslavia.

Yet ethnic tensions regularly flare-up between Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks as the legacy of the wars in the early 1990s.

So, when a 6.4-magnitude earthquake rocked Croatia last week, their Balkan neighbours turned a blind eye, right?

“We have hundreds of offers from people in Serbia, who are willing to accept those whose homes are destroyed in Croatia," Aida Corovic, a former MP and long-time humanitarian from Belgrade, told Euronews.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3hGmGms