List of Balkans articles
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (center) with his wife, Emine Erdogan, followed by then-International Monetary Fund Director Christine Lagarde (left) in Paris on Nov. 11, 2018, prior to commemorations marking the 100th anniversary of the armistice ending World War I. Why Erdogan Won’t Ask the IMF for Help
Turkey’s economy is a mess, but its president won’t seek an IMF loan because the conditions would mean giving up his extensive patronage network.
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Canan Kaftancioglu A Motorcycle-Riding Leftist Feminist Is Coming for Erdogan
Canan Kaftancioglu has fueled the rise of Turkey’s increasingly effective opposition—and earned the president’s ire.
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Employees disinfect the streets and shops inside Istanbul's famous Grand Bazaar to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in Istanbul on March 18. The Coronavirus Is Creating a Crisis on Europe’s Borders
European countries have suffered from the pandemic, but their southern and eastern neighbors are faring even worse—setting the stage for financial ruin, political instability, and a surge of refugees.
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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban leaves following a meeting during the second day of a special European Council summit in Brussels on Feb. 21. Why Populists Want a Multipolar World
Aspiring authoritarians are sick of the liberal order and eager for new patrons in Russia and China.
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Newly elected Prime Minister Albin Kurti reviews Kosovo's honor guard during the handover ceremony in Pristina on Feb. 4. ‘In the Balkans, if You Neglect History, It Will Backfire’
The acting prime minister of Kosovo says the United States helped bring down his government.
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Sanitation workers disinfect a camp for displaced Syrians next to the Idlib municipal stadium on April 9. Syria’s Forgotten War Is a Pandemic Time Bomb
U.N. officials and humanitarian workers are bracing for the worst in crowded camps and conflict zones in Idlib.
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel looks on during exercises of a NATO tank unit in Münster, Germany, on May 20, 2019. NATO Has a New Weak Link for Russia to Exploit
North Macedonia just became NATO’s newest and weakest member. That makes it a ripe target for interference.
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An Orthodox believer with a protective mask attends a religious service at an Orthodox church in Skopje, North Macedonia, on April 16. North Macedonia’s Orthodox Church Could Become a Coronavirus Super-Spreader
Despite an otherwise strict nationwide lockdown, the government’s politically motivated decision to allow Orthodox Christians to take communion from shared spoons could unleash a major COVID-19 outbreak.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Brother Tayyip’s Soup Kitchen
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s battle with opposition local governments over who provides coronavirus relief is endangering the public.
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Kosovo President Hashim Thaci reviews members of the Kosovo Security Force during a ceremony in Pristina on March 5. Trump Is Stirring Chaos in Kosovo at the Worst Possible Time
A political crisis encouraged by the United States threatens to worsen the coronavirus outbreak.
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Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend a meeting. China Has Its Eyes on Serbia
Beijing is using the coronavirus pandemic to expand its influence into the EU’s backyard.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (right) vies for the ball with Berat Albayrak—now his finance minister and son-in-law—during an exhibition match in Istanbul on July, 26, 2014. The Coronavirus Will Destroy Turkey’s Economy
Ankara’s finances were weak before the pandemic—but the combination of external debt, a public health crisis, and a president who chooses to protect his reputation rather than his people could spell disaster.
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Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi are greeted by South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa Coronavirus Has Started a Censorship Pandemic
Governments around the world are banning fake news about the crisis—and cracking down on their critics while they’re at it.
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U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell Meanwhile, America’s Kosovo Strategy Is Melting Down
As the coronavirus pandemic raises tensions, the Trump administration’s strategy of bowing to Serbia’s authoritarian president is coming completely undone.
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People inspect the damage inside a building following a rocket attack by forces loyal to eastern Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar. The Libyan Civil War Is About to Get Worse
None of the parties involved is serious about reaching a political settlement, meaning the conflict could kill many more this year.
