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A U.N. resolution The U.N. General Assembly has scheduled a debate on the resolution on the morning of May 23 to be followed by a vote in the 193-member world body. Serbia's populist President Aleksandar Vucic as well as the Bosnian Serb leadership have vehemently opposed the adoption of the Srebrenica resolution, saying it brands all Serbs as a “genocidal …

European Union's executive branch to recommend that members open accession negotiations with Bosnia

Ukraine moves forward in its EU membership quest while Balkan hopefuls slip back

Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia received positive news Wednesday about their quests to join the European Union, but countries in the volatile Balkans region that have waited years longer to become members of the world’s biggest trading bloc appeared to slip back in the queue. The European Commission lauded Ukraine, which Russian troops invaded last year, saying that the government “has …

Membership

Eu Membership

European Commission’s chief tells Bosnia to unite in seeking EU membership

EU chief celebrates ‘immense achievements’ of member Croatia

ZAGREB, Croatia — The chief of the European Union visited Croatia on Sunday to celebrate the “immense achievements” of the newest EU member nation, which switched to using the euro and joined the world’s largest passport-free travel area on New Year’s Day. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met with leaders of Croatia and Slovenia at the Bregana border …

EU countries agreed Tuesday to grant Bosnia "candidate status" to join the union, diplomats told AFP, putting the volatile Balkan nation at the start of a long road to membership. European affairs ministers meeting in Brussels gave the green light to Bosnia becoming a candidate after the bloc's executive arm in October recommended that they launch the membership process. "It …

The Netherlands won't single-handedly block Bosnia from becoming EU candidate member

The Netherlands is no longer opposed to the European Commission's proposal to make Bosnia-Herzegovina a candidate for EU membership. But, there are also arguments in favor of candidate membership, wrote Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra in a letter to the Tweede Kamer. Last month, the European Commission decided that Bosnia should become a candidate for membership, even though it does not …

Candidate Membership

BELGRADE, Serbia — Bosnian Serb separatist leader Milorad Dodik met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday days after he endorsed Moscow’s aggression against Ukraine, Russian and Serbian media reported. Dodik, a Serb member of Bosnia’s tripartite presidency, has frequently met with Putin, especially ahead of elections when he wants to show to the highly pro-Russian Bosnian Serb …

KYIV, Ukraine — A 21-year-old Russian soldier went on trial Friday in Kyiv for the killing of an unarmed Ukrainian civilian, marking the first war crime prosecution of a member of the Russian military from 11 weeks of bloodshed in Ukraine. Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova’s office has said it is looking into more than 10,700 potential war crimes involving more …

Kosovo, Bosnia call for NATO membership as war rages in Ukraine

In interviews with Al Jazeera, Kosovo’s president and Bosnia’s defence minister share their concerns about regional security and Moscow-friendly Serbia. As Russia’s influence grows in the Western Balkans and war rages in Ukraine, the leaders of Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina have said joining NATO would help preserve regional security. Bosnia is currently participating in the Membership Action Plan, seen …

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina — Members of Bosnia’s collective presidency have offered assurances that there will be no repeat of ethnic clashes in the war-scarred nation, a senior U.S. diplomat said on Monday, despite deep tensions triggered by Bosnian Serb separatist moves. Schmidt also warned that Balkan nation could break up if the international community does not curb threatened separatist actions by …

In 2019, Serbia made headlines by overtaking NATO member Croatia as the Balkan region’s biggest military spender, spending $1.14bn, an increase of 43 percent from the previous year. The announcements have made some in neighbouring countries such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Montenegro wary about Serbia’s motives, especially amid calls by Interior Minister Aleksandar Vulin on forming a “Serb …

Officials said they boycotted the meeting because of the Russian foreign minister’s ‘disrespect’ of the Bosnian state. Bosniak and Croat representatives in the country’s three-member presidency on Tuesday boycotted a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, a major snub to Moscow’s top diplomat. Dzaferovic and Komsic said they boycotted the meeting because of what they said is Lavrov’s “disrespect” …