A press review in partnership with the Balkan Mail.
Forget plum and apple trees, Romanians plant more and more banana trees. With rising temperatures, some tropical plants now find the conditions to flower and even bear fruit. Which nevertheless do not ripen (yet).
In Slovenia, the freshwater fish do not like lukewarm water. While the country has become a popular destination for fishing enthusiasts, the activity is very disrupted by the drought and the heat which overwhelm it.
In Serbia, the lucrative business of pushing back refugees
In northern Serbia, thousands of people survive in the forest or in squats along the border with Hungary. A bloody fight opposed to smuggling networks early July in the city of Subotica. The cause ? The violent repressions, which feed the business and the traffics.
In Romania too, a vast human trafficking is thriving: the targets are young women weakened by social distress. Today, a third of prostitutes in the European Union are Romanian citizens. Here, traffickers take advantage of deficient police and judicial institutions to organize a veritable trafficking in women. As for the countries of destination, they are conspicuous by their hypocrisy. A free access report thanks to the support of Journalismfund.eu.
Bulgaria splits over Russia, Kosovo stuck between China and Taiwan
Bulgarian voters will return to the polls on October 2, for the fourth time in two years. And the closer the deadline gets, the worse the political crisis gets. This week, demonstrators marched in Sofia against the rapprochement initiated by the interim government with Moscow and Gazprom on the gas supply.
It’s no secret: in the Balkans, Beijing rolls for Serbia and Kosovo pays the price. China does not recognize the independence of the former Serbian province and does not invest there. In the midst of the Sino-American crisis over the question of Taiwan, the authorities in Pristina fear collateral damage and wonder about the diplomatic strategies to adopt.
In Albania, deaths on the beach cause a wave of anger
the scandal rages in Albania after the death of a little girl killed in a bathing area by the zodiac of a police commissioner already known for his multiple blunders. Already in July, drownings had multiplied on the beaches for lack of measures taken by the authorities to ensure safety. The Ministers of Tourism and the Interior are in the hot seat.
In Greece, the government swimming in the middle of Watergate. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is on the grill after revelations that the leader of the Socialist Party was wiretapped by secret services that he himself placed under his direct authority. Faced with the scandal, he ended up breaking his silence and holding a special televised address, acknowledging “a mistake”.
After two years of Covid, the arts are making a comeback
A symbol of resistance since its beginnings in 1995 during the siege of the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Sarajevo Film Festival makes its big comeback this summer. The biggest cinema event in the Balkans has an ambitious programme, which gives pride of place to young talents from south-eastern Europe and Ukraine.
In Kosovo, the summer of 2022 will remain in the memory of Pristina and artists as the year of Manifesta, the European nomadic Biennale. Hundreds of artists took part, transforming the capital of the youngest European state into a large temporary museum of contemporary art. For once, we were able to speak well of the country.