The Western Balkans Strategy Group, working under the auspices of the Heinrich Boll Stiftung, expresses grave concern over the call from the pro-Putin and pro-Vučić coalition Za budućnost Crne Gore (ZBCG), which is part of Montenegro’s government and parliamentary majority, for the urgent introduction of a law targeting so-called "foreign agents" in Montenegro. This development raises significant alarm about the future of civil society and democratic freedoms in the country.
This election cycle could either invigorate the enlargement process or introduce new challenges, making it imperative to explore the possible impacts and strategic responses for the WB in this evolving context.
The 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections in North Macedonia occurred amidst increased Euroscepticism due to unmet high expectations for progress towards EU membership and failed promises to deliver justice and the rule of law in the country.
The Western Balkans Strategy Group, working under the auspices of the Heinrich Boll Stiftung, is urging governments of the Western Balkans, particularly Serbia and Montenegro, to actively support the UN Resolution on Srebrenica. These countries are the only ones in the region that have not co-sponsored the resolution, which aims to memorialize the genocide in Srebrenica.
The core of the EU’s relationship with the WB lies in the promise of full accession with equal rights and responsibilities. As the EU enters a period of reflection and potential reform, it must reintroduce clarity, determination, and honesty into its interaction with WB6.
This brief examines the pitfalls of border change as a possible solution to the Serbia-Kosovo problem, and addresses the question of integrity of the international community’s involvement into this discourse. It does so by confronting value-based and pragmatic-realpolitik arguments, essentially arguing that partitioning Kosovo is neither a guarantee for normalization, nor a step towards the EU for both Kosovo and Serbia.
The Belgrade and Sarajevo offices of the Heinrich Böll Foundation, together
with our editor Miloš Ćirić, have invited relevant voices to reflect on what was
achieved over the past decades in the fields of documentation, memorialization, and
processing of recent history. We wanted to learn which actors and factors determine
the cultural context, who could deconstruct the hate narratives, how nationalism
affects the culture of remembrance in the respective societies, and why the most
brutal of experiences did not lead to a better understanding of common history
in the region. In this volume, the role of the external actors is also critically questioned: what were Western donors able to achieve? Why has dealing with history never become mainstream despite the efforts of many brave, consistent and professional individuals? Is there even a need for a moratorium on dealing with the past so that new spaces for peaceful coexistence can emerge?
However, the goal is not to expose or mock these organizations but rather to better understand them and gain knowledge towards: human rights promotion for everyone and identifying how to oppose the hegemonic framing strategies, representation and discursive construction of women and sexual and gender minorities proposed by anti-gender movements.
