Balkan Developments

Queen Mathilde leads 400-member Belgian economic delegation to Türkiye

Queen Mathilde of Belgium has visited Istanbul at the head of a high-level economic delegation aimed at strengthening trade and investment ties between Brussels and Ankara, the Anadolu Agency reported, quoted by BTA. The delegation included Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Maxime Prevost, Minister of Defence Theo Francken and 428 representatives of the private sector. The visit, which lasted from May 10 to 14, focused on investment and business opportunities in key sectors such as energy, defence, aviation, logistics, healthcare, banking, technology and digitalization.

A Turkish-Belgian business forum was also held. AA recalls that the volume of bilateral trade between Türkiye and Belgium in 2025 reached $9.2 billion, as $5 billion were Turkish exports and $4.2 billion were imports. For the period between 2002 and January 2026, Belgian investments in Türkiye amounted to $9.3 billion, while Turkish investments in Belgium reached $490 million.

300,000 Turkish citizens living in Belgium serve as an important bridge between the two countries.

Greece to crack down on smuggling with digital cargo tracking

Greece is tightening border controls with a new, more modern system for tracking trucks and containers. The technology will be operational at 24 customs and customs control points at the country's main entrances, imerisia.gr reports.

Authorities will monitor the movement of shipments in real time using GPS systems, license plate recognition cameras and mobile X-rays. The measure is aimed at combating smuggling of fuel, cigarettes, alcohol and counterfeit goods.

The modernization will cover border crossings with Türkiye, North Macedonia and Albania, as well as key ports such as Piraeus, Thessaloniki, Patras and others.

Belgrade attracts US to EXPO 2027

The United States will participate in the international exhibition EXPO 2027 in Belgrade. The agreement was signed during a visit by a US delegation to the Serbian capital.

"The United States and Serbia have entered a new era of bilateral relations, and Expo will be a great opportunity to highlight our friendship and commercial ties," Sarah Rogers, United States Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy wrote in X. According to her, every EXPO is an opportunity to promote American economic and trade interests, BTA reports.

So far, over 130 countries have confirmed their participation in the exhibition in Belgrade, including EU Member States, Turkey, China and Russia.

Cyprus is gradually accepting cohabitation as an alternative to marriage

Cyprus is seeing a rise in so-called cohabitation – an official form of partnership in the country, in force since 2016, which grants some of the rights of civil marriage and is available to both heterosexual and same-sex couples. It was met with resistance from Cypriot society, but in 2024, there were already 917 couples registered with this form of family partnership. Most are heterosexual, but there are also same-sex ones. The average age at the time of signing the cohabitation agreement for heterosexual couples was 33.5 years for men and 30.8 years for women, and for same-sex couples - 40.6 years, according to data from the Statistical Service.

Rare photos from Albania show life in the country a century ago

An exhibition of rare photographs from Albania from more than 100 years ago has opened in the seaside city of Durrës after its successful presentation in Shkodër. The exhibition, called "Albania 1921 - Eugène Pittard", presents photos shot by Swiss anthropologist and humanist Eugène Pittard during his travels with his wife around the country in 1921 and 1924, vizionplus.tv reports.

The photographs show everyday life, cities, villages, people and landscapes from that time. Among the shots are also historical sites such as the entrance to the Berat Castle and others.

Swiss ambassador to Tirana, Ruth Huber, highlighted the importance of Pittard's legacy, which represents the life of Albanians from that time and his contribution to relations between the two countries.

Compiled by: Miglena Ivanova