Politics

Pashinyan and the Armenia of tomorrow

31/05/2018 -  Monica Ellena

The so-called Armenian velvet revolution has paid off – Nikol Pashinyan has become premier. But now the real challenge begins – to change the country. To be able to do it, the new premier needs at least a parliamentary majority

Serbia: parallel divergences

29/05/2018 -  Dragan Janjić Belgrade

According to the Minister of Defense, Serbia should part ways with Brussels; for the President of the Republic the European road is not under discussion. Simple divergences, political crisis, or usual two-voice game for two different audiences – local and EU?

Erdoğan in Sarajevo: the Bosnians will pay the price

24/05/2018 -  Ahmed Burić Sarajevo

The recent electoral rally that Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held in Sarajevo highlighted the difficulties of today's Bosnia Herzegovina and the contradictions of Europe

Reform of the Dublin Regulation – Towards another wasted opportunity?

21/05/2018 -  Francesca Spinelli

Prolonged discussions and disagreements between governments threaten the necessary reform of European rules on the right of asylum

Montenegro: journalist Olivera Lakić attacked

18/05/2018 -  Damira Kalač Podgorica

Olivera Lakić, investigative journalist from the Montenegrin newspaper Vijesti, was shot and wounded in front of her house, in the same place where she was beaten up six years ago. It's not easy to be a journalist in Montenegro

Demonstrating for David in Banja Luka

10/05/2018 -  Alfredo Sasso

The authorities of the Republika Srpska are not telling the whole truth on the suspicious death of 21-year-old David Dragičević. But there are now thousands of protesters who every day, for a month and a half, have been asking for clarity

Dossier: Freedom of the press in Bulgaria

03/05/2018 -  Nicola PedrazziFazıla MatValentina Vivona

Dangerous entanglements between media, politics and business in the country in charge of the Presidency of the Council of the EU

Armenia’s Space for Liberty

24/04/2018 -  Inna Mkhitaryan

The protests of these days in Armenia against the appointment of Serzh Sargsyan as prime minister - resulted in his resignation - have as their ideal and symbolic place the Freedom Square of Yerevan. The history and the present of this square

Azerbaijan: the kingdom of Aliyev secures fourth season

16/04/2018 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

Nothing but a show, with dramatic results for the future of Azerbaijan. A commentary on the recent presidential elections

Turkey: a new electoral law

13/04/2018 -  Dimitri Bettoni Istanbul

Following the recent amendments to the electoral law, the climate in Turkey reminds that of the pre-electoral period. The country, though, will not head to the polls earlier than in November 2019. An analysis by our local correspondent

Albania: the theatre of politics

10/04/2018 -  Tsai Mali

According to the umpteenth architectural project of the Rama government, the building housing the National Theatre risks demolition. Once again, the history and memory of the country are in danger. A comment

Turkey, hunger strikes against power

14/03/2018 -  Dimitri Bettoni Istanbul

In Turkey, hunger strike is an instrument of political struggle often used against power up to tragic consequences. An OBCT interview with Aslı Kuzu, researcher at SOAS University in London

Turkey: released Ahmet Şık and Murat Sabuncu

12/03/2018 -  Fazıla Mat

Two more Cumhuriyet journalists have been released, while Akın Atalay, managing director of the major Turkish daily, remains in prison

Welcome to ‘hell’: working on a Georgian railway construction site

06/03/2018 -  Luka Pertaia

Railway construction in central Georgia is a key part of ambitious plans to modernise Georgia’s infrastructure. Despite warnings from trade unions and official inspectors, life for the workers remains a ‘living hell’

Judicial reforms trouble the EU

25/02/2018 -  Mihaela Iordache

Both the European Commission and European Parliament have expressed a certain apprehension towards judicial reforms in Bucharest. Among the options on the table is making European funds conditional on the respect of rule of law

10 years of stories from Kosovo

16/02/2018 -  Veton Kasapolli Pristina

Kosovo celebrates ten years of independence – years marked by symbolic successes, but without real answers to issues such as unemployment, coexistence, corruption, and lack of a development strategy

What's behind Azerbaijan’s snap elections

15/02/2018 -  Arzu GeybullayevaTamara Grigoryeva

The presidential elections were scheduled for next October, but surprisingly the head of state has called them on April 11. Why did president Aliyev take and sign this decision?

Italians in Albania: it's raining figures

22/02/2018 -  Nicola Pedrazzi

For years, Italian media have been repeating that 19,000 Italians live and work in Albania. Yet, according to the data of the Albanian Interior Ministry, they are less than 2,000. How can we explain such a difference?

Plitvice lakes in danger

09/02/2018 -  Giovanni Vale Zagreb

Tourism, traffic, pollution, and constructions. Plitvice, today, no longer rhymes with transparent waters and uncontaminated nature. And the lakes risk to be removed from the UNESCO heritage list

Moldova: transparency and democracy can solve problems

13/02/2018 -  Francesco Brusa

Defeated in the 2016 presidential runoff, Maia Sandu has not left politics. She has recently visited Italy for a series of meetings with the diaspora. Here she speaks about her vision on Moldova

China goes to Serbia: infrastructure and politics

23/01/2018 -  Francesco Martino

Serbia increasingly appears as a central hub in the Balkans for the Chinese-led "Belt and Road Initiative", both at an infrastructural and a political level. We discussed about it with Dragana Mitrović (University of Belgrade)

Is democracy deteriorating in Europe?

17/01/2018

Freedom has been decreasing in several European countries over the last decade, according to the new Freedom House report.

Albania: Operation Alba and the memories of Romano Prodi

19/12/2017 -  Nicola Pedrazzi

The Albanian civil war of 1997 was ended by an Italian-led international contingent. Twenty years after Operation Alba, the Prime Minister who promoted it has returned to the Land of the Eagles. An interview

"Kumanovo group", heavy convictions for the 2015 shootout

27/11/2017 -  Ilcho Cvetanoski Skopje

The ethnic-Albanian members of the so-called "Kumanovo group" received long sentences by the Skopje Court. The ruling, however, doesn't clarify all the many doubts on the case

Macedonia: a landslide victory for Zaev in the local elections

08/11/2017 -  Ilcho Cvetanoski Skopje

After the SDSM’s landslide victory in the local elections, the coalition led by Zoran Zaev has now steady ground to implement systematic reforms, start legal proceedings related to the wiretapping scandal, and dismantle the mechanisms that enabled the state capture by former prime minister Nikola Gruevski

The struggle of Kurdish women in Turkey, between journalism and jineology

16/11/2017 -  Francesco Brusa

"We have always valued hope over victory. Now, however, we are winning some of our battles". An interview with Ceren Karlıdaĝ, journalist, feminist, among the protagonists of the magazine Sujin Gazete.

The whistleblower who overthrew Macedonia’s government

03/11/2017 -  Borjan Jovanovski

Former intelligence collaborator Gjorgi Lazarevski disclosed thousands of illegal wiretappings. "Bombs" which brought to the end of Gruevski's government

Clueless and ranting: the press according to Edi Rama

09/11/2017 -  Tsai Mali Tirana

With the eyes of the public still on the judicial troubles of the former Interior Minister Tahiri, Prime Minister Rama is back to attacking the press, confirming the ambiguous relationship between Albanian media and politics

Turkey, the triangle of the three s's

20/10/2017 -  Francesco Brusa

"We call it the triangle of the three s's: sermaye, sendika, and siyaset – capital, unions, and politics". An interview with the journalist and activist Özgür Karaduman about consensus and dissent in Erdoĝan's Turkey

Ukraine: Saakashvili's return, Poroshenko's power

05/10/2017 -  Oleksiy Bondarenko

The political parable in Ukraine of former Georgian president Saakashvili is not over. Meanwhile, President Poroshenko has already launched a long election campaign ahead of the 2019 presidential elections