Latest News from Albania
Ohrid Agreement: Open borders, labor and student exchange, travel with ID cards only
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, reached the agreement on how the so-called "mini Schengen" will look like with Zoran Zaev and Edi Rama, the prime ministers of North Macedonia and Albania.
The Game of Envoys: Are the EU and the US Taking the Western Balkans more Seriously?
BELGRADE - There seems to be an inflation of special envoys or special representatives for the Western Balkans, after the Western actors designated or announced the designation of several such officials.
Matthew Palmer: "Mini Schengen has US support" VIDEO
"The European perspective of the Western Balkans, which has been the basis of US engagement in the region for more than 20 years, has not changed and will not change", Matthew Palmer, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and US Special Representative for the Western Balkans said.
PM Borissov: Reconciliation and Regional Cooperation Are Key to European Integration of the Western Balkans
Reconciliation, regional cooperation and maintaining good neighbourly relations are key factors for the European integration of the Western Balkans, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said in his speech at the leaders meeting within the Strategic Dialogue for the Western Balkans, hosted by the World Economic Forum in Geneva, the government press office reported.
Bosnia Demands Explanation for Macron’s ‘Time-Bomb’ Remark
A member of Bosnia's state presidency said he would summon the French ambassador seeking an explanation, after French President Emmanuel Macron in an interview called Bosnia a "ticking time bomb" in the Balkans.
Week in Review: Testing Realities and Hot Potatoes
Self-Harm
Was the European Council's decision not to open accession negotiations with the EU an act of historic self-harm? This is the argument made in one comment piece for Balkan Insight, originally published as part of BIRN's Western Balkans Stability Monitor.
Bulgaria and Luxembourg to Work Together to Support European Integration of the Republic of Northern Macedonia and Albania
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ekaterina Zaharieva and Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Affairs and Minister of Immigration and Asylum Jean Asselborn agreed on Bulgaria and Luxembourg to work together on the European perspective of the Western Balkan countries after the lack of a decision for the start of the negotiations with the Republic Northern Macedonia and A
Johannes Hahn had no answer to one question
In his report to the European Parliament on the Western Balkans, the Commissioner for Accession Negotiations, Johannes Hahn, said that the prospect of EU accession was the biggest impetus for reforms and processes in the region, and when it came to Serbia, he said that the idea of an agreement with Kosovo would only make sense if there is a prospect of joining the EU.
Kosovo’s Demographic Destiny Looks Eerily Familiar
This is the latest in a series of articles about the demographic crisis facing Central and Southeast Europe.
See also: Bye-Bye, Balkans: A Region in Critical Demographic Decline
Bulgaria and the Czech Republic will Deepen their Cooperation to Defend Common Stances in the European Union
Bulgaria and the Czech Republic will deepen their cooperation to defend common stances on important for the two countries topics on the EU agenda. This is what emerged at the meeting between Rumen Radev and the Czech Foreign Minister Tomas Petricek, who is visiting Sofia.
EU Parliament head urges for Balkan membership talks
The head of the European Parliament says there is still hope for Balkan countries to join the European Union, and urged for membership talks to open soon with North Macedonia and Albania.
North Macedonia President to Discuss EU Accession with Macron
President Stevo Pendarovski will meet his counterpart Emmanuel Macron on the sidelines of next week's Paris Peace Forum in an attempt to convince the French President that North Macedonia deserves a start date for EU accession negotiations, it was announced on Tuesday.
The promises have been broken, and what Zaev and Rama are afraid of becomes realistic
Zoran Zaev, prime minister of North Macedonia, said in an interview that he feared a return to his ethnically divided country's "bad past", including a narrowly averted civil war in 2001. Edi Rama, prime minister of Albania, said in a separate interview that his country risked becoming "collateral damage" from the EU's divisions over enlargement, "Financial Times" reports.
US envoy calls EU decision on Balkans 'historic mistake'
A US envoy for the Western Balkans on Monday described European Union's decision not to open membership talks with North Macedonia and Albania as a "historic mistake" that sends a bad message to the region.
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Palmer said the US will do all it can to persuade the EU to reverse the decision before a planned leaders' meeting in May in Croatia.
Blocking Enlargement Is an Act of European Self-Harm
When it comes to Albania, many EU member states besides France had reservations about whether the country should be granted a date for opening accession negotiations, including Denmark and the Netherlands.