Western Balkans

The future of Europe's biodiversity may also be decided outside the European Union. In Albania's Narta Lagoon, a conflict over tourism is testing Europe's environmental credibility.

Fragile institutions, deep polarization, and growing pressures on the country's civic identity reveal how much remains unfinished. European integration is Montenegro's decisive chance, not just to close negotiating chapters, but to transform state and society from within.

Christian Schmidt's resignation as High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina was not a routine handover. It followed intense US pressure, linked to a controversy over the Southern Interconnection pipeline, where Bosnian legislation handed a major energy project to a Trump-linked company over EU objections. With Republika Srpska's Milorad Dodik presenting the departure as his personal triumph, and European actors conspicuously silent, Bosnia's fragile post-war order is under serious strain. We asked Paola Petrić, Director of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's Sarajevo office, what this moment means for Bosnia's institutions, for Washington's role in the Western Balkans, and for the EU's credibility as a guarantor of the Dayton framework.

Montenegro stands at a crossroads: will it normalise exceptional, deal-driven investment practices, or set regional standards for transparent and rule-based development? The EU has a critical opportunity to guide this process.

In November 2024, the collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad killed 16 people and sparked the largest student-led protests in Serbia's modern history. Initial grief gave way to a decentralised movement that is demanding accountability, far-reaching reforms and new elections, despite brutal repression by the regime. The protests have exposed the failure of 'stabilitocracy' and brought Serbia's democratic future — and the EU's role in it — to the forefront of political debate.

While Brussels may see the Jadar lithium mining project as a strategic step toward a greener future, Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić sees it as a tactical tool to reinforce his grip on power - just as hundreds of thousands rise to reclaim democracy.

The student protests have sparked a wave of democratic mass mobilization throughout Serbia. However, it remains to be seen whether the students’ demands can be translated into political and parliamentary action to enable a peaceful democratic new beginning. On March 15 2025, the most massive protest action yet is called for. Here are some assessments from an activists, journalists, analysts and representatives of the political opposition.

In this Böll·Europe Podcast episode we focus on parliamentary elections in Kosovo, which took place on Sunday 9 February 2025. Our guest is Granit Gashi, Kosovo Contact Point at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung's Belgrade office. Granit is an environmentalist and sustainability pioneer in Kosovo, and has previously worked for civil society organisations such as GAIA Kosovo, BirdLife Serbia. He’s also the co-founder of the Foundation for Animal Rights in Kosovo.

On 11 May 2025, Albania will hold parliamentary elections, the first since officially opening EU accession negotiations. While some significant changes mark this election—most notably, diaspora voting and partial candidate list openness—major systemic factors remain unchanged. The Socialist Party (SP), in power since 2013, appears poised for an unprecedented fourth mandate.

The EU integration process should not be a transactional relation between EU Member States and candidate countries, but a truly transformational path based on democratic values and human rights.” This was the main message which was conveyed by the members of the Western Balkans 6 Strategy Group during the advocacy visit with stakeholders on 18-20 November 2024 in Brussels. 

The lithium deal brings a new quality to Serbia’s foreign policy zigzagging. At one stroke, Serbia became a strategic partner and the guarantor for the future of the European Green Deal.

Serbia's lithium mining project in Jadar has been on hold because of mass protests against feared environmental damage. Now the EU wants to secure this lithium access for Europe - despite the political and legal conditions in Serbia. Interview with environmental and legal experts Mirko Popović and Jovan Rajić from the Renewables and Environmental Regulatory Institute (RERI).

The Kosovo war 25 years ago serves as a reminder that frozen conflicts and bilateral disputes cannot be swept under the rug for long. In the current geopolitical environment, they will blow up in Europe’s face.

Corrupt politicians have been systematically plundering public budgets and natural resources in the Western Balkans for years. Increasingly, international actors are also discovering an El Dorado for dubious investments in these countries.

Enlargement regained prominence of the European Union agenda after Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. However, the window of opportunity for moving forward will not stay open forever.

Severe heatwaves are not the only factor boiling up the atmosphere in Serbia this summer. Tens of thousands of people have been taking to the streets in a wave of protests for 12 consecutive weeks. The scale of these protests, erupting in Belgrade and spreading across almost 40 Serbian cities and towns, is the most massive wave over the last 20 years. One cannot help but wonder if the boiling tension on the streets amidst a volatile environment is a prelude to a supercell democratic storm determined to drive social change.

The app"Aktiv1st" tracks the social media activity of Socialist Party members and supporters, rewarding them with points for all their likes and shares, and ranking them in a list to foster peer-to-peer competition.

For many years, Western players have been going all out to placate the populistic-nationalist players and their destructive ideologies: yet their questionable methods of appeasement and undemocratic interventions have ended up bolstering the very powers that have come to pose a threat to peace. The way for new excesses of violence has been paved. By supporting firebrands, Russia has been able to expand its influence further – this is the Kremlin’s second front for the destabilisation of Europe.

The EuroPride 2022 fiasco shows us one thing: Serbia will not become part of the EU under President Aleksandar Vučić. The EU must face the cultural war in the Western Balkans head on, tackle disinformation and take Serbia’s EU accession seriously.