Thinking about EU ♥️
Big referendums, unwanted refugees & dissidents, old hotels and punk rock bands.
Hiya,
Welcome back to Balkan Brew, the newsletter that brings you the freshest news from the Balkans every Friday morning—whether you take it with or without sugar.
What a week it's been: an important referendum is about to take place in Moldova, migration is once again a hot topic in the Balkans, and dissidents from Belarus and Russia seem to be less welcome these days. Also, punk’s not dead, but it sure looks good in a museum.
OUR PROMISE. The 10th anniversary of the Berlin process took over our feeds this week and likely many of yours too. We solemnly swear you’ll never find anything regarding anniversaries in our newsletter. First, they get boring fast. Second, we’d rather use our limited time - and yours! - to focus on what is happening right now.
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I’m thinking about EU ♥️
Citizens of Moldova will vote on Sunday to elect their next president and decide on a crucial referendum regarding integration into the European Union. Current president Maia Sandu (a former World Bank official and pro-Western politician) is leading in the polls and appears poised for a second mandate.
THE BIG QUESTION. But the real deal is the referendum: if voters support integration in the EU, the Constitution will be amended to make EU membership a strategic objective for Moldova. This would likely represent a massive boost for pro-EU forces in the country.
PUSH-ME-PULL-YOU. Both the EU and Russia have invested heavily to influence the outcome of the referendum. The EU pledged an economic support package worth 1,8 bln EUR. Russia went for dirty tricks: besides the evergreen fake news, Moldovan authorities said that around 130,000 voters received money from Russia to vote “no” in the referendum.
WAGNER’S SUMMER CAMPS: As the referendum approaches, tensions are rising. On Thursday, Moldovan authorities announced that they had exposed a network of more than 300 people trained by Wagner in Russia, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina during the summer to provoke post-election unrest. They have also arrested several suspects.
WHAT WOULD STEFAN SAY? The EU told voters to do what’s best for their country, even enlisting Moldova’s greatest national icon: Mr. Ștefan III cel Mare himself, live from his pedestal in Chișinău. We appreciate the effort (seriously, we really do!), although, TBH, Ștefan III might have found impalements more effective than ballot boxes.
Not welcome, #1
This week, Italy sent its first boat carrying migrants to Albania - as part of its plans to send migrants rescued in the Mediterranean to centers run by the Italian government in Albania while their asylum application is considered.
NOT SO FAST. The deal has been criticized as contrary to human rights but has the EU’s not-so-tacit approval. It is also quite expensive for Italy (it will cost 670 mln EUR over five years, according to The Guardian). The first boat transported 16 persons - and four of them already needed to be sent back to Italy.
GUESS WHO’S BACK. How to prevent migrants and asylum seekers from reaching the EU is once again priority #1 for many EU governments, who might be (possibly) scared by the continent’s disastrous demographic picture but are batsh*t terrified by the surge of far-right parties everywhere in Europe.
Not welcome, #2
On Thursday, the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network published an interview with Belarusian dissident Barys Barysau. Barisau is currently in Bulgaria, where national authorities have rejected his asylum application. He has lived in Bulgaria with his wife and son since last year and now fears being sent back to Belarus, where he would likely face persecution from Aleksandar Lukashenka’s regime.
DO SVIDANIYA. Barysau is not alone: Russian activist Anton Bobrišev might have to leave Serbia after the Ministry of Interior refused to grant him a visa for reasons that are not completely clear at this stage.
PACIFIST THREATS. Around 200,000 Russians are estimated to have left for Serbia since the start of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Starting from the summer of 2023, several who spoke out against the war had their visas not renewed, often for unspecified “security reasons”, Radio Slobodna Europa reported.
IN OTHER NEWS
Kosovo PM Albin Kurti has announced that his country will abolish visas for Bosnian citizens from 2025. This is big news: Bosnia and Herzegovina has not recognized Kosovo, and its citizens usually have to travel to Zagreb or Skopje to get a visa.
The preliminary results of last year’s referendum in Montenegro are out. As it happens too often, much of the attention focused on the country’s national composition and the increasing number of citizens declaring themselves as Serbs.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, thousands attended mass funerals on 15 October in Jablanica for the victims of the recent floods and landslides.
Authorities in Turkey have shut down the independent radio station Açık Radyo after a guest on one of its programs referred to the atrocities committed against the Armenian minority during World War I as “genocide”. The station went off in style and played “Good Vibrations” at the sign-off.
Albania has formally opened EU accession talks. Spoiler: tackling corruption will likely be one of the most contentious issues for the country in the future.
AND FINALLY. The iconic Hotel Jugoslavija in Belgrade is being demolished to make space for a luxury complex. Hotel Jugoslavija opened in 1969: over the years, its guest list included Queen Elizabeth II and US astronaut Neil Armstrong. Last Sunday, several Belgrade residents protested “against the destruction of history”, as one of their messages read.
HEY, HO: LET’S GO. Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana is planning to open a museum of punk music in spring 2025. N1 has put together a long article about the punk scene in Ljubljana, which was pretty vibrant at the end of the 70s. The story features rebellion! socialist boredom! And some really cool pictures from that era.
This is all for this issue. Let us know your comments, ideas, and any news we might have missed, any feedback is much appreciated! Support our project by forwarding this newsletter and signing up.
Keep up the good vibrations.
BB