” A historic moment “Launched Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday July 19 in Brussels, during her press conference held with the Albanian and Macedonian Prime Ministers, Edi Rama and Dimitar Kovačevski.
The European Union had just officially opened accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia, two countries stuck in the antechamber of the European Union since 2014 and 2005 respectively. process promises to be long and difficult before their integration.
“ French proposal » accepted
It was the signing, two days earlier, of the bilateral agreement between North Macedonia and Bulgaria which had made it possible to unblock the veto posed by Sofia. The day before, the Macedonian Parliament had approved the proposal negotiated by France to put an end to the historic conflict with the neighboring country, despite the daily demonstrations of the nationalist-conservative opposition.
Slovenia: no more anti-refugee barbed wire, room for drones
On July 15, the new Slovenian government undertook the destruction of the huge barbed wire fence on the border with Croatia, announcing that surveillance would now be done using drones. With this very symbolic measure, the new Liberal Green Prime Minister was implementing one of his campaign promises. But after barely a month in power, Robert Golob is already annoying.
Fires and delicate ecological transition in the Balkans
Slovenia has had to struggle for several days with the worst fire “ Since twenty years “, as stated by the Minister of Defense. Four villages have already had to be evacuated on the border with Italy because of the megafire, which started last weekend. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, firefighters are struggling with the flames in the Blidinje Nature Park, one of the jewels of the south of the country. In both cases, the wind complicates the work of firefighters.
These fires occur at a time when a heat wave is submerging the Balkans and is a reminder of the effects of climate change. However, the ecological transition is lagging far behind in the countries of south-eastern Europe, whose subsoil is full of lignite. Interview with Chiara Martinellithe director of the European Climate Action Network (CAN-E), who took part in the Just Transition forum in Sarajevo at the beginning of July.
In the Western Balkans, whose subsoil is full of lignite, decarbonization remains for the moment a wishful thinking. In early July, the Just Transition forum brought together decision-makers from the energy sector in Sarajevo to accelerate the transition to renewables in the face of the climate emergency. Maintenance.
Serbia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates… and the war in Ukraine
On Wednesday, Serbia rolled out the red carpet for Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi. A ” strategic partnership was tied between the two countries and there was a lot of talk about the crisis in Ukraine during this visit between two founding members of the non-aligned movement. Serbia has long maintained privileged relations with the countries of the Arab world.
Since 2012, Serbia under President Aleksandar Vučić has also come much closer from the united arab emirates. The tiny Gulf monarchy invests its petrodollars in Serbian arms and farmland, taking advantage of little control over money laundering.
Last weekend, an Antonov An-12 crashed in northern Greece, killing all eight crew members, all Ukrainians. This mysterious cargo plane chartered by a Ukrainian company carried Serbian military equipment… to Bangladesh.
Free access: Ukrainian exile diaries (5/10) | “ I don’t know what tomorrow will be like »
The war broke out the day the Ukrainian singer Bad Sasha was to leave for Serbia to present her latest album. Torn between her desire to act and her family’s concern for her safety, she finally left kyiv for Belgrade, where she gave several concerts in support of Ukraine.