Politics

Protests in Nardaran, a majority conservative Shia village in the outskirts of Baku, indicate a growing discontent for the country's difficult social and economic conditions

According to a judgement of the Kosovo Constitutional Court, all the deputies in the National Assembley must be present to choose the next president. This is why, mantains Andrea Capussela, Hashim Thaci is not going to be elected

The new international openings towards Iran introduce a possibility of economic cooperation between Ankara and Tehran, two regional powers so far divided

The Kosovo President, Atifete Jahjaga, ends her mandate in early April, but who is going to succeed her?

Bosnia Herzegovina and the challenges ahead, twenty years after the signing of the the Dayton Peace Agreement. Interview with the Italian Ambassador in Sarajevo, Ruggero Corrias

With the lack of interest and competition, disbelief, and long tradition of manipulated election results it is unlikely November 1^st elections in Azerbaijan will bring much change. More likely, they will only reconfirm the projections of results for these elections - one party rule on both presidential and parliamentary levels.

Armenian citizens continue to show great vitality, now directed against constitutional reform projects. The story behind the "VOCH" protest movement

The Brussels deal between Serbia and Kosovo has been met both with enthusiasm and disappointment in the region

An initiative advocating the use of the Ustaša salute ‘Ready for the homeland’ in the Croatian army has caused shock in the local public, indicating the persistence of a fascist legacy in Croatia

A rally in the Armenian capital against yet another electricity price increase triggers the police. Beatings, insults, and even violence against journalists

After a life in Germany, Ziya Pir decided to return to Diyarbakır and run for the political elections in the ranks of the HDP. His vision on Turkey

What is the weight of the Gezi Park movement in the electoral success of the HDP at the political elections held in Turkey last June 7^th? A comment

Serbia's Prime Minister paid a historic visit to Albania last week. Major disagreements remain, especially over Kosovo, but great cordiality was expressed. In the background, the need for collaboration on major infrastructure projects for the region

In the aftermath of the Skopje rallies, internal talks supported by EU and US diplomacy are trying to draft an exit strategy to the crisis

Serbian Ombudsman Saša Janković has been under attack for months. A campaign orchestrated by government circles and the media close to them has been trying to denigrate both his function and his person. An analysis

The forthcoming visit of Pope Francis to Bosnia Herzegovina prompts comments and analyses on the issue of catholic identity in the Balkan country. Our interview to academic and mediaevalist Dubravko Lovrenović

Despite significant progress in recent years, Turkey is still struggling with an anniversary that marks a past yet to be overcome

A recent investigation by investigative team OCCRP and NGO MANS revealed a secret Swiss account with $ 3.8 million payable to the wife of Svetozar Marović, one of the leaders of the ruling party. Interview with Vanja Ćalović, director of MANS

In June 2015, Baku will host the European Games. Human Rights watchdogs believe the international event will serve to whitewash the country’s deteriorating rights reputation

The arrest on spurious charges of investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova is being met by a disturbing silence of the international community, and shows there are no more boundaries for the Aliyev regime

After years of extreme hostility, PDK and LDK strike a power sharing deal creating a government which will have to tackle the huge unemployment problem, and make progress on the normalisation of relations with Belgrade

Can the judges of the Constitutional Court in Kosovo take part in decisions on matters that affect them directly? Of course they can. A comment

Kosovo's political crisis has been solved bypassing its democratic institutions, namely the Parliament, making the State weaker in the long term

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama mentioned Kosovo's independence during his historic visit to Belgrade. It was enough for Serbian media to start a smear campaign against him

The decision to hand over the judicial system to domestic authorities, cutting Eulex’s mandate before its objectives were achieved, will not help Kosovo in the long term. Analysis of the recent EC report

These days local media claim that Kosovo's president is planning to dissolve the Assembly if the two opposing political sides will not find an agreement on the election of the Assembly president. For Andrea Lorenzo Capussela it would be a small coup d'état

The abolition of "Utisak Nedelje", a popular political talk show broadcast on B92 TV and directed by Olja Bećković, caused a true storm among Serbian journalists. But this is not the only programme gone missing from the schedules

The Caviar diplomacy continues to be successful. The alarm messages arriving form Azerbaijan on systematic violations of human rights in the country are constantly dropping into the void

After the enlargement stop set by President Juncker, some fear the risk of a Turkish scenario for the Western Balkans, i.e. negotiations that never end. Renzo Daviddi, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, thinks different. Interview

The US judge Robert Carolan, appointed by the ICO to serve in the Kosovo Constitutional Court, has withdrawn his recently announced resignations. Given his previous record, this may not be good news for the Kosovo judiciary