Conflicts

War in Ukraine, the Balkans hold their breath

01/03/2022 -  Giovanni Vale Zagreb

Concern is growing in the Western Balkans about the evolution of the war in Ukraine. Geopolitical and economic issues make the region one of the areas particularly sensitive to possible serious repercussions linked to the ongoing conflict

Donbass, the veil of hypocrisy has been lifted

26/02/2022 -  Matteo Zola

The aggression of the Putin regime on Ukraine has also removed the veil on the hypocrisy that has reigned in the Donbass from 2014 to today. What Moscow presents as a genocide conducted against the Russian-speaking population is nothing more than a mafia black hole

War in Ukraine: reactions from the South Caucasus

24/02/2022 -  Marilisa Lorusso

If the secessionists of Abkhazia and South Ossetia celebrate the Russian recognition of Donetsk and Lugansk, Georgia reaffirms the integrity of Ukraine, while Armenia finds itself in a difficult situation as an ally of Moscow but with good relations with Kiev. Azerbaijan, on the other hand, coordinates with Turkey

Bosnia and Herzegovina: how to organise territorial representation and effectiveness?

14/01/2022 -  Bojan Vlaški

How can the federal system of Bosnia and Herzegovina become more effective? Some proposals by Bojan Vlaški, professor of Law at Banja Luka University. A contribution to the debate we are gathering on the BiH reforms

Syria, Armenia, Ukraine: wars and refugees

31/12/2021 -  Armine Avetysian

After 10 years of violence, bombings, terrorist attacks, the fire in Syria has ceased, but human suffering is not over yet. There are still millions of people living as refugees. Some of these people, who have lost everything, dream of returning to Syria, some are settling elsewhere

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s constitutional crisis: Is this time different?

23/12/2021 -  Maja Sahadžić

As the situation in Bosnia escalates, Dr Maja Sahadžić, University of Antwerp, gives her take on the long-running constitutional crisis in the region

Bosnia Herzegovina: on federal systems, competencies and transfer agreements

21/12/2021 -  Jens Woelk

Under no circumstances can one Entity - after more than 15 years - simply "pull out the plug ", without taking care of the consequences for the other justice systems and the State as a whole

Is participation a possible way out of the constitutional conundrum?

16/12/2021 -  Francesco Palermo

It is now clear that constitutional reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina is as necessary as it is difficult. A possible solution could come from participatory constitutionalism

Sochi: the summit of uncertainty

09/12/2021 -  Onnik James Krikorian Tbilisi

A trilateral meeting between the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia was held in Sochi on 26 November. Few details emerged from the meeting. For some it was a non-event, for others a step forward in diplomacy

Greece looks to the US for security and investments

09/12/2021 -  Mary Drosopoulos Thessaloniki

Relations between Greece and the US – historically strong, but not always rosy – are strengthening at an economic and strategic level, as testified by the renewal of a mutual defense pact, with eyes on the threatening role of Erdogan's Turkey

Armenia and Azerbaijan: the waltz of (missed) meetings

25/11/2021 -  Onnik James Krikorian

A trilateral meeting between Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia should take place tomorrow, November 26, in the Russian tourist resort of Sochi. At the center of the diplomatic initiative the possible agreements between the two warring countries. However, the information is still scarce

One Year After the 2020 Karabakh War

11/11/2021 -  Onnik James Krikorian Tbilisi

Though the future remains unpredictable, last year’s war between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh changed the geographical and geopolitical landscape in the South Caucasus after three decades of bitterness, conflict, and division. Now, some analysts hope, there is an opportunity to turn a new page in Armenia-Azerbaijan relations

Remembering Georgi Vanyan

28/10/2021 -  Onnik James Krikorian Tblisi

Peacebuilder and true activist, anti-nationalist Georgi Vanyan died at the age of 58 on October 15th. He is especially remembered for the enormous effort to bring Azerbaijani and Armenians to dialogue

Sea of Azov: Mariupol's iron dust

27/07/2021 -  Claudia Bettiol Mariupol

Despite the proximity to the Donbass conflict, there is an air of normalcy in Mariupol, Ukraine. But that very air is heavily polluted by the historic Metinvest metallurgical complex

The Switzerland of the Balkans

25/06/2021 -  Stefano Lusa Koper

Thirty years ago Slovenia proclaimed its independence. Now the pendulum that carried Ljubljana towards the West seems to be swinging backwards fast, and the models are no longer Paris or Berlin but rather Budapest and Warsaw, with their illiberal democracies

Armenia: the war in Nagorno Karabakh and assisted reproductive technology

05/05/2021 -  Armine Avetysian

In Armenia, mothers who lost a child in the recent war in Nagorno Karabakh will have access to a special assisted reproductive technology programme

Nagorno Karabakh: school, victim of war

27/04/2021 -  Armine Avetysian

The outbreak of the war in Nagorno Karabakh caused 100,000 displaced persons and 30,000 schoolchildren and students could no longer attend their schools

When libraries burn

13/04/2021 -  Božidar Stanišić

The National Library of Belgrade, the oldest cultural institution in Serbia, was destroyed on April 6, 1941 by the Axis forces on Hitler’s explicit orders. Thus Serbia lost an inestimable cultural heritage in a single day

Armenia and Azerbaijan: women peacebuilders on the post-conflict scenario

08/03/2021 -  Claudia Ditel

Women are not only victims of conflict, but also of gender discrimination, exacerbated by war. We talked about it with peace activists from Armenia and Azerbaijan

What about the survivors? The importance of a victim-centred approach to transitional justice in the Western Balkans

22/02/2021 -  Giulia Levi

The path of transitional justice has proven difficult and discontinuous, yet it has had a real impact on the lives of ordinary citizens. Survivors’ families and associations, who invested the most emotional labour in the process, however, have often felt left out of the official transitional justice processes

Bosnia and Herzegovina, from ethnocracy to feasible reforms

14/01/2021 -  Alfredo Sasso

25 years after Dayton, Bosnia and Herzegovina discusses the discriminatory nature of its constitution and its possible reform, but also possible alternatives for a change in the country's institutional system. We talked about it with Nenad Stojanović

North Macedonia: census yes, census no

23/12/2020 -  Aleksandar Samardjiev Tetovo

2021 for North Macedonia should be the year of the new general census, after the failure of 2011. However, many issues remain unresolved: the inclusion of emigrants and the delicate topic of ethnic balance are of particular concern

Mostar's divers

07/01/2021 -  Veronica Tosetti

Starting from those moments of precipitous flight towards the Neretva, the first long feature directed by Daniele Babbo shows both the love for a city and how hard it is to live in it. An interview

The 1425 days of Sarajevo

The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, signed at the military base in Dayton, Ohio, on 21 November and then formalised in Paris on 14 December 1995, decreed the end of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The capital, Sarajevo, was held under siege for 1452 days, from 6 April 1992 to 29 February 1996. The story of those years in photographs, courtesy of photographer and journalist Mario Boccia to OBCT

The face of a traitor

23/11/2020 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

Hatred, bullying, threats and insults. Our correspondent Arzu Geybullayeva has been exposed to a repeated series of social media attacks in recent weeks. The reason is simple, she decided to take side for peace during the recent war in Nagorno Karabakh

Azerbaijan, the Internet in times of war

04/11/2020 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

Since the fighting with Armenia began in late September, Azerbaijan's government has severely restricted, when not completely blocked, Internet access. Pro-government media outlets have been spared from the restrictions

Nagorno Karabakh: information in danger

03/11/2020

The partner organisations of the Council of Europe Platform for the promotion of journalism and the safety of journalists express their urgent and deep concern about the ongoing risks of injury and harm to media workers reporting on the armed conflict inside Nagorno Karabakh, and condemn any arbitrary restrictions imposed by state authorities engaged in the conflict because they represent undue interference in the ability of journalists to perform their important role of informing the public through free and independent reporting

Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, the risks for Georgia

27/10/2020 -  Onnik James Krikorian Tbilisi

Two sizeable communities of Armenians and Azeris live - mostly separate - in Georgia. The current conflict has exacerbated the spirits of the two minorities, particularly on social media, arousing the concern of analysts

Nagorno Karabakh: the reasons for a war

07/10/2020 -  Giorgio Comai

The long-term reasons for the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh are well known. But what caused such an extensive military intervention as the one we are seeing these days, over 25 years after the ceasefire? And what can and should be done now? An analysis

To stand for peace, in spite of everything

05/10/2020 -  Bahruz Samadov

In Azerbaijan, trauma is a part of national identity. Today, it feeds the war and silences voices for peace. But would-be peacemakers, no matter how hard it is, must have compassion for and engage with this trauma while remaining true to their principles