The huge "Free Ukraine" banner on the wall of the Grand Hotel in central Pristina was the most visible sign of the sincere, open and unconditional support and sympathy that Kosovo's Albanian majority has expressed for Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Serbia last week.

Ukraine joined the WTO Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) two years ago. This opened up the public procurement markets of the agreement’s participating countries to Ukrainian businesses, including EU member states.

Russian intelligence activity has intensified ahead of France’s presidential election.

Mammoth bones, a sunken Nazi ship, and unexploded World War II ammunition – these are just some of the discoveries that have emerged from the waters of the Danube in recent weeks as record-low water levels continue to expose the riverbed.

Andy Burnham became the new prime minister of the United Kingdom two weeks ago.

In recent days, Ceuta – a tiny Spanish enclave in North Africa – has resembled a battlefield. Tens of thousands of migrants, mostly from Morocco, attempted to reach the territory of an EU country in chaotic and dangerous conditions.

The International Criminal Court has been criticised for its slow pace, selectivity, uneven attention to different conflicts, dependence on state cooperation, and inability to enforce its own decisions independently.

Ukraine has received only €8.1 billion under the EU's €90 billion "loan", which is, in practice, non-repayable assistance. Of this amount, €4.9 billion has been allocated to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine, while €3.2 billion has gone towards supporting the Ukrainian state budget.

After nearly 17 months of disputes and discussions, the US sanctions bill against Russia could become the first sanctions law of Donald Trump’s current term aimed at the Kremlin.

One major lesson from the political catastrophes of the 20th century appears paradoxical: Democracies sometimes must pursue seemingly undemocratic measures against those who would cynically exploit the system to gain power and then abolish democracy altogether.

Alarming news has been coming from neighbouring EU member state Poland – news that also concerns the principles enshrined in the Fundamentals cluster. Attacks on Ukrainians in Poland have become increasingly common.

On 24 July, Jarosław Kaczyński, leader of Poland’s opposition party Law and Justice (PiS), announced the removal of 30 members from the party.

At a time, the European Union has declared its commitment to gradually phasing out cooperation with the aggressor state and reducing its dependence on Russian energy resources under the REPowerEU plan. However, decisions taken at the national and regional levels in Germany contradict this strategic course. 

The European Union has finally approved its 21st package of sanctions against Russia.

According to data from international organisations, Ukraine has declined for the third consecutive year in the Rule of Law Index under the criterion of Equal Treatment and Absence of Discrimination, falling from 30th place in 2022 to 43rd place in 2025 among 143 countries.

We are now in the final stretch of negotiations on the EU’s 21st sanctions package against Russia. It focuses on energy, financial services, cryptocurrency and trade.

Last year, the Serbian authorities reversed reforms in several sectors, including the independence of the judiciary.

Some institutional failures unfold not through scandal but procedure.

As Türkiye’s geopolitical and economic importance grows, NATO allies are increasingly willing to turn a blind eye to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s attacks on democratic institutions.