Balkan Legal News – 7 January 2026

The following media round-up on international, legal and foreign policy issues from around the Balkans for the period from 23 December 2025 to 06 January 2026. Guernica 37 will provide weekly media updates with a focus on Bosnia and Hercegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia. Should you wish to contribute or submit a media summary, opinion piece or blog, please send to Ned Vucijak at nenadv@guernica37.com for consideration.

Guernica 37 Balkan Legal News

Albania – 6 January 2026

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama held a meeting in Paris on Tuesday with France’s Minister of Justice, Gérald Darmanin, focusing on cooperation in the field of justice and penal policy reforms. According to Rama, discussions centred on the participation of French partners in a reflection group addressing challenges in Albania’s penal policy, as well as the consolidation of the new draft Penal Code in line with European standards and best practices. Rama and Darmanin also discussed strengthening further cooperation between Albania and France in the justice sector, reinforcing bilateral relations between the two countries. The full article is available here.

Kosovo – 6 January 2026

Kosovo’s Foreign Minister Donika Gervalla-Schwarz warned on Monday that Serbia’s actions reflect Russia’s intentions in the region, accusing Belgrade’s leadership of pursuing destabilising ambitions rather than democratic reforms. “History has taught us that to understand Russia’s intentions in our region, one should watch Serbia’s actions. Serbia doesn’t have a foreign policy different from Moscow’s”, Gervalla-Schwarz said in a post on the US social media platform X. The full article is available here.

Turkey – 6 January 2026

Turkey is prioritising Africa, where strategic competition is accelerating, the director of its National Intelligence Organisation Ibrahim Kalin declared on Tuesday, saying that Ankara is using an “African approach” to address the continent’s challenges. Kalin further stated: “As the National Intelligence Organisation, our activities on the continent, from our stabilising and balancing stance in Libya to our contribution to the fight against terrorism in Somalia and our operations in Sudan, have attracted the attention of many countries”. The full article is available here.

Serbia – 5 January 2026

The Government has adopted the draft Strategy for the Management of Mineral and Other Geological Resources of the Republic of Serbia for the period 2025–2040, with projections through 2050, which now requires approval by the National Assembly. Emphasising the equal importance of economic, environmental, and social considerations, the Strategy’s implementation should strengthen the legal framework, ensure a balanced approach between economic growth and environmental protection, support the remediation of abandoned mining sites, and secure a stable supply of critical and strategic raw materials, Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Đedović Handanović stated. The full article is available here.

Bosnia & Hercegovina – 5 January 2026

Bosnia’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, Stasa Kosarac, on Monday revoked the licence of BNT Tvornica Masina i Hidraulike to produce drones, citing violations of the Law on the Production of Weapons and Military Equipment. The decision has halted the production of military drones, of which two types were presented at the end of October. According to the decision, inspections at BNT, a company from the city of Novi Travnik, identified “numerous illegalities and irregularities” in drone-production activities. The full article is available here.

Balkans – 3 January 2026

Political leaders in Albania and Kosovo, both vocal allies of Washington, spoke out strongly in support of the United States attack on Venezuela on Saturday – but other states urged a return to calm or gave no immediate response. Albania’s Foreign Minister Elisa Spiropali said in a statement on X that her country “unequivocally stands with the United States” and President Donald Trump in their action against what she described as “Venezuela’s narco-terrorist regime. The full article is available here.

Greece – 1 January 2026

A trilateral plan for military cooperation between Cyprus, Greece and Israel, along with two bilateral cooperation plans between the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Hellenic Armed Forces, and between the IDF and the Cypriot National Guard, were signed in Cyprus last week.

The agreements were signed in Nicosia during the annual joint meeting of the three countries' military staffs and were officially announced by the IDF, drawing a largely positive response from both the domestic media and the public in Cyprus. While the details of the agreements have not been made public, they reportedly include provisions for joint exercises and training, the establishment of working groups in specialised areas and the development of a strategic military dialogue. The full article is available here.

Serbia – 24 December 2025

The Higher Court in Novi Sad on Wednesday rejected part of the indictment related to the Novi Sad railway station outdoor canopy collapse in November 2024, which killed 16 people and sparked a mass protest movement that has shaken the government. Criminal proceedings were discontinued against six people, including Goran Vesic, who was the Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure at the time of the renovation of the station that preceded the infrastructural collapse. The full article is available here.

Kosovo – 23 December 2025

Dragutin Naskovic, a wartime police commander in the eastern Kosovo village of Zheger/Zegra, in Gjilan/Gnjilane municipality, pleaded not guilty to war crimes charges on Tuesday at Pristina Basic Court. “I don’t feel guilty of any of the allegations I am charged with” Naskovic told the court after the prosecutor read the indictment. Ajshe Ferati, the prosecutor, said that Naskovic, during March to April 1999, as commander of a police sub-station in Zheger, “did not take any measure to prevent looting, deportations and the murder of 29 Albanian civilians”. The full article is available here.