Seriously Balkans - The BiEPAG Talks

Seriously Balkans - The BiEPAG Talks

By Balkans in Europe Policy Advisory GroupSociety & CultureNewsGovernment
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Seriously Balkans - The BiEPAG Talks episodes

  • The EU-Balkans Roundup #1: Elections, War Memory and the EU’s Pull
    In the first EU-Balkans Roundup, Damir Kapidžić, Donika Emini, Florian Bieber and Tena Prelec take stock of four stories shaping the region. Florian looks at Serbia’s snap election and the student challenge to Aleksandar Vučić, against the backdrop of Ratko Mladić’s funeral and the competing images of Serbia it exposed. Damir turns to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s general election and the role of the Office of the High Representative. Donika unpacks the political aftermath of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers’ first-instance war-crimes convictions of Hashim Thaçi and three other former KLA leaders. Tena closes with the wider enlargement picture: Iceland’s vote against reopening EU accession talks, Erdoğan’s statement that membership is no longer a priority for Turkey, and Montenegro’s accelerating accession process. Together, they ask what these developments say about democratic competition, political legitimacy and the EU’s changing pull in the Balkans.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    45 min
  • Discussing France, EU Enlargement, and the Future of Europe

    “Seriously Enlargement” is a new podcast series within Seriously Balkans: The BiEPAG Talks, hosted by BiEPAG member Donika Emini. The series explores EU enlargement from the perspective of member state capitals and examines how national visions shape the future of the European project.


    In the opening episode, Timothée Truelle and Natasha Wunsch discuss France’s evolving approach to enlargement, the meaning of “controlled enlargement”, phased accession and institutional reform, and the domestic political challenges surrounding future expansion.


    The conversation also considers the role of the European Political Community and what France’s position means for Montenegro, Albania, the wider Western Balkans, Ukraine and Moldova.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    44 min
  • The Flamingo Revolution in Albania
    The episode discusses the mass protests in Albania against the development of Sazan Island and the cost in Southern Albania by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. Since, the protest movement has turned to demand the resignation of the Prime Minister Edi Rama and the opposition leader Sali Berisha. It explores the causes, the Prime Minister's response, and the potential role of the EU. Quickly, the movement has become the largest civic protest in Albania in decades, reflecting a broader dissatisfaction the dominant political and economic system. 

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    28 min
  • Mining & Real Estate in the Balkans: Is Corrosive Capital Western now?

    There are growing tensions around mining, environmental justice, and large-scale investment projects in the Western Balkans. As the region becomes increasingly important for Europe’s green transition and real estate development, local communities are raising concerns about environmental degradation, opaque decision-making, and the weakening of democratic safeguards.


    The episode explores cases ranging from Rio Tinto’s lithium project in Serbia and the Vareš mining project in Bosnia and Herzegovina, to Belgrade Waterfront and Velika Plaža in Montenegro, asking how these projects reshape local governance and public trust — and whether corrosive forms of capital are no longer associated only with non-Western actors.


    The discussion features Vedran Džihić (Senior Researcher at OIIP and BiEPAG member), Barbara Frey (MSCA PF Fellow at the University of Rijeka), and Iliriana Gjoni (Research Analyst at Carnegie Europe), and is moderated by Tena Prelec (Assistant Professor at the University of Rijeka and BiEPAG member).


    Referenced reports:

    Džihić, V. and Kmezić, M., "Mining in the Western Balkans: How to counter authoritarian extractivism?", BiEPAG, March 2026. https://www.biepag.eu/publication/mining-in-the-western-balkans-how-to-counter-authoritarian-extractivism


    Gjoni, I. et al. "Rules or Deals? The EU’s Challenge in Regulating Corrosive Capital in the Western Balkans", Carnegie Europe, December 2025. https://carnegieendowment.org/russia-eurasia/research/2025/12/rules-or-deals-the-eus-challenge-in-regulating-corrosive-capital-in-the-western-balkans


    Prelec, T. et al., “Foreign Influence Challenges: Corrosive Capital and Disinformation in the Western Balkans and Associated Trio”, GEO-POWER-EU, November 2025. https://geo-power.eu/portfolio/item/d3-3-i-foreign-influence-challenges-corrosive-capital-and-disinformation-in-the-western-balkans-and-associated-trio/


    Bassuener, K. et al., “The Vareš Mining Project in Bosnia and Herzegovina: A Case Study of Corrosive Capital in an Already Corroded Political Economy”, GEO-POWER-EU, April 2026. https://geo-power.eu/news/d3-3-i-the-vares-mining-project-in-bosnia-and-herzegovina-a-case-study-of-corrosive-capital-in-an-already-corroded-political-economy/

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    48 min
  • A Change in Hungary: What does this mean for relations to the Balkans?
    On April 12th, 2026, parliamentary elections in Hungary resulted in a landslide victory for the opposition Tisza party of Peter Magyar, ousting the incumbent Viktor Orban and his Fidesz party after 16 years in government. The Hungarian elections were closely followed by media outlets throughout Southeast Europe. The change in government will greatly impact all countries of the region, especially in terms of support for illiberal and autocratic leaders who have so far enjoyed a warm welcome in Budapest. The discussion features Eszter Kováts, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the University of Vienna, and Zsolt Kerner, journalist at 24.hu, and is moderated by Damir Kapidžić, BiEPAG member.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    33 min
  • The Student Protest Movement in Serbia: What does the Future hold?
    More than a year of protests, resistance and demonstrations have confronted the authoritarian rule of Aleksandar Vučić. This episode of Seriously Balkans reflects on the status of the resistance, the prospects for democratic change and the options for the European Union. While the main protests have subsided, Serbia remains in a permanent state of emergency. This is no longer controlled by the regime, which is confronted with local acts of resistance and a mobilised population. It remains unclear when, or whether, elections will be held in 2026; a return to the unconditional dominance of the ruling SNS seems unlikely. The authors of the BiEPAG policy brief “Lessons from the 2024–25 Protests”, Nikola Burazer, Marina Vulović, and Jelena Vasiljević, present their key findings. 

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    30 min
  • The Western Balkans under Trump
    In 2025 we saw fractures emerging in the transatlantic alliance as the second Trump administration pushed a new foreign policy vision focused on a sovereigntist understanding of spheres of influence. Repeatedly Europe, and foremost the European Union, have been sidelined as partners and often depicted as adversaries. We explore the implications of this emerging transatlantic rift on the countries and region of the Western Balkans. The discussion features Eszter Kováts, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the University of Vienna, and Biljana Kotevska, journalist at 24.hu, and is moderated by Damir Kapidžić, BiEPAG member.

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    39 min
  • Seriously Balkans - The BiEPAG Talks, episode 20

    Dayton at 30: Bosnia’s Post-War Generation


    This year marks the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Dayton Peace Agreement. Since then, a whole generational change has happened, but in terms of constitutional arrangements they have remained frozen for three decades.


    2025 has seen a lot of reflections on this topic, but we are going to explore it from a different angle. Today we’re talking about what “Dayton” means for young people in the country, those who were born after the war of the 1990s ended.


    Host: Damir Kapidžić, BiEPAG member


    Guests:

    Tahir Herenda, Teaching assistant at the Law Faculty, University of Sarajevo

    Nikolina Lozo, Teaching assistant at the Law Faculty, PIM University

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    28 min
  • Seriously Balkans - The BiEPAG Talks, episode 19

    The Predicament of Media and Press Freedom in the Balkans


    During 2025, press freedom and independent journalism have come under sustained attack. The war in Ukraine, the genocide in Western Asia, and the political rise of extremist parties have all contributed to the erosion of one of the core pillars of democratic societies.


    In the Balkans, governments with increasingly authoritarian tendencies have for years exerted pressure on non-aligned media, disregarding the very European standards they are expected to uphold as EU candidate states.


    USAID - the U.S. agency that supported journalists and media organizations worldwide — has been shut down by President Donald Trump. Voice of America has not updated its homepage since March. Radio Free Europe faces a severe funding crisis. N1 and Nova TV continue to operate under intense political pressure. And in July, the region’s largest media outlet, Al Jazeera Balkans, abruptly closed without a clear explanation.


    So, is media pluralism in the Balkans under attack? And what does escalating political pressure mean for journalists - and for the public?


    Host: Giorgio Fruscione, BiEPAG member I Italian institute for international political studies

    Guests:

    Lejla Mazlić, Communication and Engagement Lead and former Al Jazeera Balkans 

    Slobodan Georgiev, News Director at TV Nova S

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    34 min
  • Seriously Balkans - The BiEPAG Talks, episode 18

     A Change in Republika Srpska?


    Host: Damir Kapidžić, BiEPAG member

    Guests: Dženeta Karabegović, Associate Professor at the University of Salzburg, and Vedran Džihić, a member of BiEPAG


    This episode reflects on developments that have been keeping Bosnia and Herzegovina on edge. In the past year, the longtime leader of Bosnian Serbs and president of the ruling SNSD party, Milorad Dodik, was sentenced by the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was sentenced to one year in prison, a sentence he commuted, removed from the office of President of Respublika Srpska, a subnational entity of BiH, and barred from holding public office for six years. He still disputes the sentence, even I though it is final. Since then, early elections were held in RS to fill his vacated, which were won by Siniša Karan, Dodik’s chosen successor. The shifting dynamics of the transatlantic alliance and general elections scheduled for October 2026 for their complicate the situation. To what all of this means and if we can expect a change in RS and for BiH?

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    38 min

About Seriously Balkans - The BiEPAG Talks

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Seriously Balkans - The BiEPAG Talks is a podcast series that offers an in-depth analysis and background information to current events in the Balkans, as well as discussions with leading policy…