The following media round-up on international, legal and foreign policy issues from around the Balkans for the period from 9 February 2024 to 16 February 2024. Guernica 37 will provide weekly media updates with a focus on Bosnia and Hercegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia. Should you wish to contribute or submit a media summary, opinion piece or blog, please send to Ned Vucijak at nenadv@guernica37.com for consideration.
Albania - 15 February 2024 U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Albania on Thursday to reaffirm relations with a key partner in the region and assure Western Balkan countries of Washington’s support for their integration into the European Union; see here.
Bulgaria - 15 February 2024
The case of a brutal knife attack on a young woman last summer, which provoked uproar in Bulgaria, has entered court but was quickly held up by procedural issues, likely meaning a long process ahead; see here.
Serbia - 15 February 2024
Serbia has received another arms delivery from its ally Russia despite international sanctions on Moscow over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Serbian populist President Aleksandar Vucic on Wednesday presented a Russian anti-drone system for electronic jamming known as Repellent that he recently said “is in our hands.”; see here.
Greece - 14 February 2024
Greek police joined counterparts in 30 countries in a major international operation, codenamed SHIELD IV, which has dismantled a criminal network that had been trafficking unauthorised pharmaceuticals and medical devices since 2019; see here.
Serbia - 12 February 2024
The Working Group of the High Judicial Council met for the 4th time in Belgrade, continuing work on the Draft Rulebook on the evaluation of the work of judges, with the support of the joint EU/CoE Project "Support for the Implementation of Judicial Reform in Serbia"; see here.
Bosnia - 11 February 2024
The state-level ruling coalition in Bosnia & Herzegovina has agreed to table to parliament four key laws, including one on prevention of money laundering, in an attempt to get a green light for the start of EU membership talks in March, Nermin Niksic, the leader of the Social-Democratic Party (SDP), said on February 9 following a meeting of political leaders; see here.
Bulgaria - 11 February 2024
A Saudi dissident who has unsuccessfully sought asylum in Bulgaria told AFP Sunday he received a deportation order and now fears he could be sent back to the Gulf kingdom any day; see here.
Kosovo/Serbia - 9 February 2024
Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti again called on Serbian President Aleksander Vucic to sign the EU-mediated Brussels agreement during a face-off at the UN Security Council on Thursday, but Vucic refused and was scolded by the council president for interrupting and shouting in the assembly; see here.
Balkans - 9 February 2024
Robert Badinter, who spearheaded the drive to abolish France’s death penalty, campaigned against antisemitism and Holocaust denial, and led a European body dealing with the legal fallout of Yugoslavia's breakup, has died. He was 95; see here.
Romania - 9 February 2024
The government of Romania established on February 8, by emergency ordinance, the creation of a team of 15 law experts from the Ministry of Finance and the General Secretariat of the Government (SGG) to manage all information that other ministries or entities may have regarding ongoing or future litigation of the Romanian state, similar to disputes such as Roșia Montană or Pfizer; see here.