Environmental Protection Agency

Prague has been no stranger to invasions down the ages. In recent years, a multinational force has taken over the centre of the city, albeit arriving on budget airlines rather than tanks and brandishing cash, not guns.

Since the Czech government closed the borders on March 12, the invasion has been halted in its tracks.

Flood of tourists slows to a trickle

Many topics, little consensus

Pedestrians walk in the Serb dominated northern part of the ethnically divided town of Mitrovica, Kosovo, 2020. Photo: EPA-EFE/VALDRIN XHEMAJ

The government stressed the need to create new jobs and reduce unemployment, and for demographic renewal - which it was planning to assist by offering financial compensation to parents of newborn children.

The report states: "The reopening of peace discussions has been quickly focused on territorial border modification and has put on the table the debate/taboo on possible reconsideration of Balkans' map."

Tandem

As tensions continue to rage within Montenegro between the Government and supporters of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has voiced only moderate criticism of what is going on in the neighbouring country. Strange, for a man who seeks to position himself as the champion of Serbs in the region.

As in the rest of the Balkans, the aftermath of the pandemic will push hundreds of thousands of people into economic misery.

Thousands of Bosnian are lining up every day already, waiting to register at unemployment bureaus, while the full socio-economic impact of the pandemic is yet to come.

As the results of Central Election Commission showed, the once dominant Democratic Party of Kosovo, PDK, came third, winning just over 21 per cent of the votes. The Alliance for the Future of Kosovo, AAK, won over 11 per cent.

He also voiced concern over the lack of "political culture" in Kosovo, and over the independence of the judiciary that will issue this potentially controversial decision.

Borg Olivier was the key legal advisor to UNMIK involved in setting up the Constitutional Framework for Provisional Self-Government in Kosovo in 2001.

The car of Montenegrin editor Dusko Jovanovic, who was murdered by an unidentified gunman in front of his office in Podgorica on May 27, 2004. Photo: EPA-EFE/SASA MARICIC

Poland is also facing one of its worst droughts in years. For charities, that translates into a rise in the cost of hay - vital food for many animals in care.

"After a few difficult years, we were getting rid of the debt created by the previous economic crisis," Rybkowska comments, wryly. "Now, suddenly, the coronavirus is putting us back again."