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The leading Balkan news channel in English on Telegram.
—🇬🇷🤝🇸🇦 NOTE: Greece deployed a Patriot battery and around 120–130 troops to Saudi Arabia under a 2021 defence deal, tasked with protecting refineries and other critical energy infrastructure from missile and drone attacks.
➡️ Riyadh covers the costs and upgrades, while Athens gains live missile‑defence experience and political capital with Saudi Arabia, the US and key Gulf partners.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇷🇸/🇩🇪 NEW: Republika Srpska president Milorad Dodik met AfD co-chair Alice Weidel in Budapest.
➡️ Dodik is firmly aligned with Germany’s far-right AfD, which he has previously praised as the party that can return Germany to a “path of progress”.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
🇺🇦(🇷🇴)❌🇺🇦🪖 Tensions in Ropcea, Chernivtsi region: civil resistance against military mobilization and intervention by authorities
On March 20, 2026, in the village of Ropcea, located in the Chernivtsi region and inhabited predominantly by ethnic Romanians, a conflict was reported between citizens and representatives of local public authorities, namely the police and the territorial military commissariat (TCK). According to available reports, a group of women from the village blocked the main street, intervening to protect young men and men who were about to be drafted into compulsory military service.
The situation indicates a collective reaction of the local community against the administrative measures adopted by the Ukrainian authorities, which raises issues regarding the proportionality and legality of the intervention of public forces in the context of military mobilization. At the time of the incident, the Ukrainian authorities did not issue official statements regarding the event.
Online, community members from the Chernivtsi region expressed support for the residents’ civic action, using messages such as: “Bravo to the brave women”, “It was long overdue” and “Where there are many, the power grows”. These reactions indicate the existence of community solidarity towards those affected by the mobilization, which may influence how similar situations are handled in the future.
The videos documenting the incident were taken over and shared on social media platforms by Ukrainian politician Vitalii Kuprii. In his comment, he noted: “Chernivtsi region. People chase TCK and police out of the village. To stop them from coming, they even broke their wheels”, underlining the high level of tension and the degree of active resistance of the local community.
@Wallachian_Gazette
#BREAKING | 🇹🇷 🇶🇦 — The Turkish Ministry of Defense has confirmed that 1 Turkish soldier and 2 ASELSAN technicians were killed in a Qatari military helicopter crash, along with 4 Qatari soldiers.
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—🇪🇺/🇹🇷 NEW: The European Union has proposed that Türkiye join the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), a 41-country framework that makes cross‑border euro transfers as fast and cheap as domestic payments.
➡️ EU officials say the move could generate significant savings for Turkish businesses, consumers and the large diaspora by slashing fees and transfer times.
➡️ Ankara’s official response remains unclear and the offer is under review by the Finance Ministry.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇦🇱 Tirana, Albania, is rapidly transforming into a "Manhattan of the Balkans" by shifting from a low-rise, post-communist city to a high-rise, modern metropolis with a skyline featuring buildings over 150 meters by 2030
🔗 Dominus Albaniae
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—🇬🇷 WATCH: In Greece, a migrant burst into an Orthodox Church and tried to disrupt the liturgy.
🔗 Visegrád 24
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—🇧🇦/🇺🇸 Polymarket: Suspected Bosnian war criminal arrested by U.S. Marshals in Alabama, where he sold eggs to Walmart.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇸🇮/🇪🇺 POLITICO: Slovenia’s PM Robert Golob has urged European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to investigate accusations that Israeli spy firm Black Cube interfered in the country’s election campaign.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇧🇬/🇷🇴/🇺🇦/🇲🇩 NEW: A European Group for Territorial Cooperation bringing together local and regional authorities from Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine and Moldova is being created in Constanta.
➡️ It's the first structure of its kind on the EU’s eastern border, gathering over 150 local representatives.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—❗️🛢🇷🇸 BREAKING: Serbia is extending the ban on exports of oil and motor fuels until April 2.
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—🇪🇺❌🇷🇸 European Commissioner for Enlargement:
I told Serbian Speaker that the recent steps taken by Serbia's authorities to curb the independence of its judiciary are a great concern.
We expect the implementation of the new judiciary laws to be put on hold until the Venice Commission issues its opinion, and for Serbia's authorities to respect the opinion & revise the laws accordingly.
I have informed the Speaker about our ongoing assessment whether Serbia still meets the conditions for payments under the EU's financial instruments.
I also urged an end to attacks on civil society and journalists.
—❗️🇲🇩/🇪🇺/🇲🇩 NEW: Moldova has presented in Brussels a draft concept on the gradual reintegration of the Transnistrian region.
➡️ Chisinau stresses the document is a non-binding discussion paper for EU partners rather than an official settlement blueprint.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—If I were you guys, I'd go to a gas station right now.
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—🇪🇸🤝🇦🇱 NEW: Spanish FM José Manuel Albares reaffirmed Madrid’s “firm support” for Albania’s EU accession during a meeting in Madrid with his Albanian counterpart Ferit Hoxha.
➡️ The talks also focused on boosting trade and investment, particularly in renewables and infrastructure.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—❗️🇬🇷/🇸🇦/🇮🇷 NEW: Greek crews operating Patriot air defense batteries in Saudi Arabia have shot down two Iranian ballistic missiles targeting the SAMREF oil refinery in Yanbu on the Red Sea coast.
🔗 Visegrád 24
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇦🇱/🇽🇰/🇲🇰 NEW: Albania is observing Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, as a national public holiday today, reflecting the country’s strong Bektashi heritage and broader multifaith participation in the festival.
➡️ Bektashi Muslim communities in Kosovo and North Macedonia are also marking the holiday, which combines the Persian New Year with local religious traditions.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—❗🛢🇸🇮 Reuters: Slovenia limits fuel purchases as pumps run dry.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇸🇮 FACT: The most densely differentiated Slavic language, Slovenian, is spoken by a population of less than two million; however, its dialects are more variegated than those of Russian, spoken by a population of more than a hundred million.
🔗 Luka Lisjak
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇦🇱 WATCH: The start of Eid was celebrated with a drone show in Albania's capital, Tirana.
🔗 kos_data
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇭🇷❌🇺🇸🇮🇱 NEW: Nearly 80% of Croatian citizens oppose US and Israeli attacks on the Islamic Republic of Iran, according to a new poll by Croatian National Television (HRT).
➡️ The survey found 77.4% do not approve of the strikes, 10.1% support them, and 12.5% are neutral or undecided.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇨🇭/🇺🇸 NEW: Switzerland will stop issuing permits for companies exporting weapons to the United States in response to US attacks on Iran.
➡️ This decision was taken in accordance to its neutrality policy, the Swiss government said in a statement.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇲🇰 NEW: The Iran war is expected to trigger an economic crisis in North Macedonia, with experts warning of rising energy costs, higher inflation, and pressure on already fragile public finances.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇭🇺/🇷🇴 UPDATE: Although these measures may appear drastic, in October of last year both Hungary and Romania experienced serious acts of sabotage targeting critical energy infrastructure. — Dunav Intel
On 21 Oct, a fire broke out at MOL’s Százhalombatta refinery, Hungary’s largest and most modern facility, which receives Russian crude via the Baracsag pipeline.
Hours earlier, an explosion struck Petrotel-Lukoil refinery in Ploiești, Romania one of the country’s largest, with an annual capacity of 2.5M tons.
—🇽🇰❌🇷🇸 Kosovo PM Kurti on Serbia's military drills near the administrative border:
It's a provocation. Serbia attempts to undermine the sovereignty & territorial integrity of our Republic.
But it's also an expression of their powerlessness. They cannot stop us, no matter what their plans are.
—❗️🇷🇸/🇭🇺 NEW: Serbian Armed Forces have been deployed to guard the pipeline transporting Russian gas from Turkey to Hungary in the Žabari area.
➡️ Special forces will counter potential ground threats and the 250th Rocket Brigade is providing air defense coverage.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—❗️🇬🇷/🇮🇱 NEW: A Greek parliamentary committee has approved the €3 billion Achilles Shield program, moving ahead with an Israeli multi-layer air and drone defense network.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇪🇺❌🇷🇸 NEW: The European Union is considering sanctions against Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić over Belgrade’s lack of progress on key EU-related reforms, including rule of law, media freedom, or democratic standards.
➡️ Some MEPs warn of measures that could hit Serbia’s political and economic interests and signal that Brussels’ patience is running out.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🪖🇷🇸/🇽🇰 WATCH: Serbia has deployed paratroopers and helicopters in military drills over the Albanian-majority Presheva Valley near the border with Kosovo.
➡️ Albanian National Council Chairman Ragmi Mustafa called the exercises a dangerous intimidation aimed at pressuring Albanians to leave the area.
✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English
—🇪🇺/🇲🇪 European Commissioner for Enlargement:
Montenegro is the most advanced candidate country on the road to the EU.
Today we closed another negotiation chapter, bringing the total to 14.
But much work still lies ahead. Now is the moment to keep up the pace of reforms, with a strong focus on the rule of law.