Albania
Wildfires strain emergency services in Albania
Wildfires continued to sweep across southern Albania on July 28, prompting the evacuation of several villages and mobilising hundreds of emergency workers as authorities struggled to bring dozens of blazes under control.
Serbia to repatriate entire gold reserve amid global uncertainty
Serbia’s central bank plans to repatriate the country’s entire gold reserves from abroad, becoming the first Eastern European country to hold all of its bullion domestically.
Analyst warns Kosovo risks economic and political isolation as Albania moves closer to EU
Kosovo may face a return to “hard borders” with Albania and Montenegro within the next five to seven years if current political trends continue.
€1bn EU energy crisis aid in Western Balkans largely untraceable, watchdog says
CEE Bankwatch research reveals only €163.1mn of €1bn spent could be clearly linked to advancing the Green Agenda.
Nigel Farage proposes sending UK prisoners to El Salvador following Trump model
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has announced plans to send British prisoners to El Salvador if he becomes prime minister, mirroring a controversial arrangement between US President Donald Trump and his Salvadoran counterpart Nayib Bukele.
Albania steps up emergency measures as wildfires threaten homes and protected areas
Albania adopts emergency measures to combat fires threatening homes and national parks, as heatwave increases fire risk across the country.
Albania eyes AI-run ministry as PM Rama pushes digital governance
The government in Tirana has embraced AI, even using ChatGPT to analyse where Albanian legislation diverges from the EU acquis.
EU risks fuelling democratic decline in Balkans as reform credibility erodes, report warns
The European Union is prioritising short-term stability over genuine democratic reform, says a report from the Balkans in Europe Policy Advisory Group.
Migration pushes EU population to record high, but CEE countries continue to shrink
Immigration outweighed the natural population decline in 2024 in just three of the newer EU member states – Croatia, Czechia and Slovenia.
Furious protesters fight back with Molotov cocktails against Albanian PM’s war on illegal construction
Albania’s growing reputation as a tourist destination is at risk after residents of the northern Theth region hurled hurled Molotov cocktails at police and demolition teams.
Albania emerges as new frontrunner in EU accession process
European Parliament’s rapporteur for Albania confirmed to bne IntelliNews the country is now considered a frontrunner among the EU accession candidates.
European Parliament calls for reforms and action on foreign interference in Western Balkans
MEPs warn that democratic backsliding and geopolitical vulnerabilities could stall progress across the region.
Massive landfill fire in Albania contained after blazing for eight days
Landfill fires are a hazard in the Western Balkans where investments in infrastructure have not kept up with the increase in waste generated.
Albania issues arrest warrants in tax, money laundering probe targeting Bankers Petroleum
Chinese-owned Bankers is the developer of Albania's Patos-Marinza oil field, one of the biggest onshore oil fields in Europe.
Western Balkan leaders meet in Skopje to advance EU Growth Plan
Growth Plan aims to fast-track the Western Balkans' convergence with the EU through deeper market access, pre-accession funding and regional cooperation.
Emerging Europe growth resilient despite global risks, wiiw says
Economies across Central, Eastern and Southeast Europe are set to maintain solid growth in 2025 and 2026 but face downside risks from Middle East tensions, the war in Ukraine and US trade policy.
Albanian PM mocks Reform leader Farage in row over prisoner numbers
Edi Rama said he would take back all Albanian prisoners if Farage’s claim one in 50 Albanians in Britain are in prison is correct — but insists it’s an exaggeration.
BALKAN BLOG: Western Balkans military build-up continues as the world looks elsewhere
As the world’s attention remains focused on the wars in Ukraine and, more recently, the Middle East, several countries in the Western Balkans are ramping up their military capacities.
TikTok access reportedly restored in Albania three months after ban
No formal announcement of end to year-long TikTok ban but users across the country report full access to the platform.
Global uncertainty causes FDI to plummet in Emerging Europe
wiiw research blames crisis in German industry and the uncertainty surrounding Donald Trump’s second term as US president for sharp slowdown in FDI.