3 mins
After his visit to France, the Chinese president went to Serbia, before completing his European tour in Hungary – he left this Friday. A boon for Xi Jinping’s Serbian counterpart, Aleksandar Vučić, who so likes to showcase his “iron friendship” with him. Is this to better scare the European Union and the United States? Analysis.
25 years ago, on May 7, 1999, the Chinese embassy in Belgrade was destroyed by NATO bombs, a tragedy that the Middle Kingdom has never digested. Since then, a gigantic building, the Confucius Center, was erected on its ruins. A symbol of Chinese soft power in Serbia.
In Croatia, the right joins forces with the far right to govern
The HDZ conservatives and the Patriotic Movement (extreme right) agreed to form a government coalition after three weeks of negotiations. Founded in 2020 by singer Miroslav Škoro, the Patriotic Movement finds itself in a position to infuse its ultra-nationalist, ultra-liberal, arch-conservative and homophobic program into all ministries.
Meanwhile, the Croatian left’s descent into hell continues. The Social Democratic Party, although in full right-wing drift, lost again against the HDZ, while Možemo’s ecologists were left behind by the two far-right parties. What can the left do to get out of this tunnel? Analysis.
We also veered to the right in North Macedonia. The nationalist right of VRMO-DPMNE won by a wide margin in the presidential election – with almost two thirds of votes for its candidate Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova – and came close to an absolute majority in Parliament during the legislative elections. It is the worst debacle in the history of the Macedonian social democrats, outnumbered in number of deputies by a coalition of parties representing minorities, led by the BDI.
Is there a place for ecology in the political debate in North Macedonia, where pollution is wreaking havoc? While the major parties forget their promises once in power, some try to make another voice heard, like Gorjan Jovanovski, an independent elected official from Skopje.
The new battle of Srebrenica is being played out at the UN
A resolution sponsored by the West wants to recognize the genocide committed in Srebrenica in July 1995… but Serbia is doing all it can to block it, mobilizing all its allies: China, Russia and even Israel. As the shadow of Gaza hangs over the debates, the countries of the South could become divided. Decryption.
In Greece, drought disrupts ecosystems. Natural disasters are increasing, temperatures are exploding and precipitation is becoming scarce. In the north of the country, rivers are drying up and lakes are emptying, putting the fauna, flora and humans to death.
Never has there been so much reliance on road transport, and never has Europe had such a shortage of drivers. Those from Ukraine have almost disappeared from the European market, while Bulgarian and Romanian drivers prefer to work for Western companies where salaries are much better. But money isn’t everything and depression is never far away. Reporting.