Analysis

Thewesternbalkans A grand US-led connectivity project was announced at the G20 summit in New Delhi in September 2023, connecting India with Europe via the Persian Gulf. It is intended to rival China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). India-Middle East-Europe Economic...

Thewesternbalkans. Balkan Union 1 Kosovo, Albania and Croatia signed a trilateral declaration on a military alliance on March 18 in Tirana, Balkan media reported. The declaration was signed by the defense ministers of Albania, Piro Vengu, Croatia, Ivan Anušić and Kosovo, Ejup...

Thewesternbalkans According to some publications, including at the European Western Balkans, on 21 of November last year, it has been announced that Montenegro and Albania became the first-ever enlargement countries to join the geographical scope of the Single Euro Payments...

Thewesternbalkans In its Statement of estimates for the financial year 2025 from 17 of June 2024, the European Commission presented its proposal for the budget of the EU for the year 2025. It is an extremely important proposal not only for...

Thewesternbalkans In June 2024 Financial Times (FT) revealed that Serbia has exported to Ukraine ammunitions for about Euro 800 million although it is one of only two European countries not to join western sanctions against Russia. Following the publication of FT,...

Thewesternbalkans Basic developments. February 2008: Kosovo unilaterally declares independence. July 2010: The International Court of Justice issues advisory opinion on Kosovo's declaration of independence and concludes that it did not violate general international law or UN Security Council Resolution 1244/99. March 2011: The...

(Part One) Thewesternbalkans A Slow Death? In response to the question of where the Belt and Road Initiative is headed, China experts from various countries make two main assumptions: Deprioritization or slow death of the Belt and Road Initiative, originally called in China...

Thewesternbalkans. Challenges to Enlargement The Munich Security Conference highlighted that EU enlargement cannot be seen in isolation from political developments in the US. The US Vice President criticized democracy in the EU while Europe faces serious security and economic risks. In...

Thewesternbalkans 2. Arms export to Ukraine? The production and export of ammunition and armaments from Bosnia and Herzegovina has experienced significant growth in recent years, especially in 2023. The country has inherited a powerful arms industry from the days of the...

Thewesternbalkans. In November 2023, as part of the Enlargement package, the European Commission adopted a new Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. This mechanism ties funding (grants + loans from 2024–2027) to completion of country-specific "payment conditions"— milestone-driven reforms aligned...