Unemployment, poverty, and disillusionment with the political elite is emptying small Albanian towns and villages of people; the young are moving abroad, taking with them the hopes of their families for a financial lifeline.
The pro-Russian Revival and Socialist Party are pitching themselves as bulwarks against the encroaching values – and currency – of the EU, ahead of yet another general election in Bulgaria.
Last year saw the highest number of refugees and migrants trying to cross the Balkans en route to Western Europe since 2015. The EU also sought new ways to stop them.
Leaders of Serbs in Croatia and Croats in Serbia have played a key role in thawing once icy relations between the two countries – and so, hopefully, creating a more stable neighbourhood.
Serbia’s growing interest in sophisticated surveillance software has experts worried about personal data rights, not least given how far the law lags behind.