Balkan Developments

EU Commissioner Marta Kos rejects Serbia and Albania's proposal

Accession to Schengen or the EU's common market, proposed by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, requires reforms that are just as difficult as those for EU membership, EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Koss said at a press conference in Brussels.

In an article for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Rama and Vucic complained about the slow pace of EU integration, which they attributed to "internal reforms, geopolitical tensions, institutional constraints and legitimate fears of member states." The two leaders want their countries to be included in the single market and Schengen without the right for veto enjoyed by full EU members, BTA reports.

Difficult negotiations for forming ruling coalition in Slovenia are coming

The ruling left-wing Freedom Movement party has won a narrow victory in the parliamentary elections in Slovenia. The right-wing opposition Slovenian Democratic Party demanded a recount due to the small difference of 7,700 votes.

Since the secession from Yugoslavia, these are the 10th parliamentary elections in Slovenia. For the first time since 2000, an incumbent prime minister has achieved victory, BGNES reports. The voter turnout of 69% is the same as that in the previous vote. With 28.6 percent, the leftists will have 29 seats in the 90-member parliament. The rightists, with 28.03 percent, will have 28 MPs. The future coalition will be decided in negotiations with the other 8 formations that have overcome the 4% barrier to enter parliament.

Kosovo heads for third snap parliamentary elections

The Constitutional Court of Kosovo has overturned President Vjosa Osmani's decree for dissolving the country's new parliament, elected on December 28, 2025. The lawmakers have about a month to elect a new president of the Republic of Kosovo, the court ruled. If they fail to elect a president, the parliament is dissolved and another snap parliamentary election must be held within 45 days.

Kosovo has been in political limbo since the elections in February 2025. The lack of a culture of inter-party compromise threatens to create an endless cycle of institutional crises, analyst Artan Muhaxhiri told Radio Evropaelire.

Greek trade union GSEE unhappy with 920 euro minimum wage

The largest national trade union in Greece, representing private sector workers – GSEE, has declared the increase in the minimum wage in the country from 880 to 920 euros insufficient, informs ekathimerini.com. According to the union, the increase in the minimum gross wage, which the Greek government plans from April 1, is insufficient to cope with the rising prices of basic goods, energy and housing. Studies by the union’s Institute of Labor show that a large share of workers are struggling to cover basic monthly needs, with Greece remaining low in the purchasing power rankings within the EU. The GSEE forecast for 2026 sets the monthly gross minimum wage for a decent standard of living at 1,052 euros.

The war in Iran is causing Romanians to install LPG systems in their cars en masse

The Romanian government has declared a state of crisis on the fuel market until June 30. A ceiling has been imposed on the trade mark-up throughout the chain – from the refinery to the final sale, as well as restrictions on the export of diesel and crude oil. Sanctions of up to 10% of turnover are also envisaged. Meanwhile, Romanians have begun installing LPG systems in their cars en masse. They want to reduce fuel costs after the prices of gasoline and diesel increased significantly due to the war in Iran, digi24.ro reports. There are requests for the service in all cities of the country and queues are forming at car repair shops. The price of the system with installation ranges from 813 to 1,864 euros. Drivers say that the investment is worth it and it will reduce their costs by about 50 percent.

Compiled by: Ivo Ivanov