There are 911 Unesco heritage sites in the world. 18 of these in the Western Balkans. From the open plains on the island of Hvar to the Mostar Bridge, archaelogical sites in Albania and the Durmitor glaciers in Montenegro: a review
On 9 September, the UN General Assembly adopted a compromise resolution on Kosovo submitted by Serbia and supported by the EU. Kosovo Serbs seem to be confused over what Belgrade’s move actually means, and if this is going to change something in their everyday life
“I always tell my students that, when sitting an exam, they have to answer the question that has been set rather than one that they feel comfortable with.” Stefan Wolff comments on the main conclusions of the International Court of Justice's Advisory Opinion on Kosovo’s Declaration of Independence
In early July, a series of political incidents in Mitrovica resulted in a death and several injured people. After ten years of conflict over Serbian-controlled north Kosovo, the divided city of Mitrovica emerges again on the Kosovo and international political agenda
All the people from Peja, Kosovo, would have no second thoughts if they were asked to identify Majlinda Kelmendi: the gold medal winner of the junior world championship of Paris, in 2009. The life and story of a girl who dreams of representing Kosovo in the 2012 Olympic games
Mostar, Berlin, Kosovska Mitrovica, Beirut. Four cities marked by a common fate: divided, ghettos for their own citizens and frontiers between worlds in conflict. The “Festival of Art in Divided Cities”, held in Mostar in April, sought to demystify stereotypes and to create new connections
Internationals and locals in Kosovo, two groups that sometimes seem to inhabit separate worlds, have difficulties communicating because of stereotypes held by both sides. Playwright Jeton Neziraj and his German counterpart Kathrin Röggla have explored the subject in a series of correspondences; now edited under the title “Pizza UNMIK”
Four months after Kosovo Prime Minister Hashim Thaci announced a government reshuffle, it eventually became real in Pristina on April 1. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find any strategy and clear political guidelines behind the initiative
Wrongdoings by the former secretary of the Kosovo Eparchy Archbishop Artemije are at the root of a scandal that dates back years and is bringing political hostility and conflicts of interest to the surface inside the local hierarchy of the Serbian Orthodox Church
The leak in January of the International Civilian Office (ICO) draft strategy for northern Kosovo stirred intense reactions. The plan, which foresees a complex net of new bodies and the "closure" of the Mitrovica office of UNMIK, has been rejected by Serbs as a new try to implement the 2007 Ahtisaari plan
Michael L. Giffoni, the Italian ambassador in Pristina, was recently appointed to the post of EU Special Envoy for Northern Kosovo. In this interview, Mr. Giffoni talks to OBC about his new assignment
“The music by emerging bands tells of young people's bitterness for the surrounding world. Words are brutal, lyrics are cruel, and music soaks rebellion". A journey through the music scene in North Mitrovica and its young protagonists
In Kosovo many buildings, mostly belonging to Serbian citizens, are occupied or sold illegally in the owners' absence. Swindlers often use false documents and conniving officials, unveiling the weakness of the rule of law. The case of Peja/Pec
The mid-November local elections in Kosovo stressed once more the two different realities of the Serbs living north and south of the Ibar river. For those living south, some kind of participation was considered as a vital necessity to retain local power. North of Mitrovica, the boycott was almost complete
Days after the 15 November elections in Kosovo, unorthodox agreements have caused a rift between the coalition partners in the Pristina parliament. Prime Minister Thaci's PDK threatened to break up with President Sejdiu's LDK, but its attempt to dictate the political agenda to its junior partner clearly failed
Tensions between LDK and PDK in view of Kosovo's local elections of November 15th. Bitter fights over the control of Pristina, the likely boycott from Kosovo Serbs. The electoral campaing in the chronicle of our correspondent
Glamour and red carpets, together with international star Vanessa Redgrave, characterised Pristina's first film festival. The goal? To launch the Kosovo brand on the international scene
The difficult balances of the EULEX mission, the proposals for territorial exchange between Serbia and Kosovo, and the visa liberalisation issue. Our correspondent talked to Italian ambassador in Kosovo Michael L. Giffoni
Recent statements by Sali Berisha on the strengthening cooperation between Albania and Kosovo have stirred a lively debate over the notion of "Greater Albania". Political considerations notwithstanding, relationships between the two states have been intensifying
The Kosovo government is having their first major disagreement with EULEX over the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo intention, announced in August, to sign a protocol with Serbian police as part of regional cooperation to fight organized crime
Membership in the World Bank costs Kosovo greatly because it must pay its portion of the old Yugoslav debt. As outlined by the Ahtisaari plan, membership comes despite Kosovo not receiving any assets deriving from the dissolution of Yugoslavia. Belgrade's continuing politics to pay Kosovo's foreign debt, as part of Serbia's general debt, is breaking down
Investigative journalism in Kosovo? Someone is trying, not without difficulties. The case of the TV programme "Jeta në Kosovë" and threats to journalist Jeta Xharra stir the debate within institutions and the public opinion
The Central Bank of Kosovo warns that the remittances are falling as the diaspora starts to feel the effects of the global economic crisis. Kosovo's diaspora has a long tradition of sending money home because of strong family ties, a practice developed because of Kosovo's difficult political and social environment during the last decades
Together with some fellow journalists, Altin Raxhimi, an Albanian freelance reporter, took the hard path to disclose the truth on KLA detention camps, allegedly established in Albania and Kosovo during the 1999 war. An exclusive interview for Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso
''The decline in economic growth will be more effective in raising poverty rates than the 6 years of growth just passed was in reducing them''. An interview with Paul Stubbs, author of an independet study for the European Commission on social inclusion in the Western Balkans
Bombers crossed the sky by night and thousands of desperate people gathered at the borders by day. In Macedonia, at the time of the conflict in Kosovo, the smell of war was in the air. Back then, for most people in the country, it was as close as they had ever been to war in their lives
From the very beginning of the Nato campaign in March 1999, the city of Gjakova in western Kosovo became a city under siege and had to deal with reprisals by Serbian army and police. Its inhabitants remember those days
It was 1999 and refugees from Kosovo began to pour into a disoriented and torn-apart Albania. The 1999 crisis was a human drama, but it was also an occasion for two communities, divided for decades, to come together and tear down some national-romantic myths
Pristina's population has increased from around 100,000 in 1981, to an estimated 500,000 today. The city's turbulent growth has been marked by a frenetic building activity without any planning. This model of development is now being questioned
After the big vote in the UN General Assembly, the Macedonian Government recognized Kosovo. Despite the bitter reactions of Belgrade, Skopje thinks its decision will strengthen peace and stability in the region
