Around the Bloc – 7 October
In the news: elections in Kosovo; mortgages in Poland; farewell to composer Giya Kancheli; Mike Pompeo, China, and the Balkans; and Estonia’s climate policy.
Bulgaria and Japan Celebrate Their Surprising Links
Society: Enthusiasts of the “special relationship” are gathering in Sofia this autumn, to celebrate and renew a mutual admiration society.
4 October 2019
Around the Bloc – 4 October
TOL’s regional news roundup: a Yazidi temple in Armenia; Putin and Greta Thunberg; a Belarusian nuclear plant; prisons in Russia; and the passing of Karel Gott.
Society: Marshal Konev Statue Poised to Retreat?
A recent decision to move a communist-era statue in Prague reveals
the perils of reassessing the past.By James Duffy, Lachlan Hyatt and Emily Mason3 October 2019
Around the Bloc – 3 October
In the news today: eastern Ukraine; disinformation in
Latvia; a Serbian church in Bosnia; North Macedonians
and Bulgarians; and alcohol in Russia.
Stuck in the Middle
Looked at more broadly, Trump’s treatment of Ukraine
shows the country’s lingering inability to escape the
power games of Moscow and Washington.
2 October 2019
Notes on a Scandal
Politics: In Ukraine, Donald Trump impeachment controversy
is an unwanted distraction for Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
From The Conversation.
1 October 2019
Around the Bloc – 1 October
Regional highlights: governmental NGOs; domestic violence
in Tajikistan; Tito’s yacht; a North Macedonian documentary;
and body positivity on RuNet.
FROM THE TOL ARCHIVE – EDITORS’ PICK
Praising Stillness Amid the Whirlwind
During his state visit to Bulgaria in early May, the pope offered words of contemplation for the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
28 May 2019
Being Yezidi
Caught between competing ideological interests, members of Armenia’s most numerous minority struggle to define their identity.
11 November 2004
Summit Exposes Strains in EU Eastern Policy
The party to celebrate 10 years of the Eastern Partnership
ended on a low note.
16 May 2019
Corruption and Romania’s DNA
Arrests and protests are making it harder for the country’s
politicians to dodge a deep-seated issue. From LSEE.
22 April 2015