Accidents and tragedies with fatal outcomes, mass demonstrations, resignations, and political turmoil marked the region in the past year, 2024.
At the beginning of October, severe floods struck northern Herzegovina and central Bosnia, claiming 27 lives.
The damage was estimated in the billions of euros, as not only were dozens of residential buildings destroyed, but numerous economic facilities and infrastructure were also severely affected.
The devastating scale of the floods in northern Herzegovina and central Bosnia is exemplified by the fact that local elections in Jablanica, Konjic, Kiseljak, Kresevo, and Fojnica had to be temporarily postponed.
The October floods also caused significant material damage in certain parts of Croatia and Montenegro.
Progress in Montenegro and Albania, stagnation for Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) on the European Path
Serbia faced a major tragedy in early November when 15 people died due to the collapse of a canopy at the Novi Sad Railway Station.
The loss of so many lives triggered a wave of demonstrations that, over the past two months, gathered tens of thousands of citizens across Serbia – not only in Novi Sad but also in Belgrade and other cities. Students joined the demonstrations, leading to the blockade of numerous university faculties across Serbia.
Events in Croatia on the last day of the first school term at “Precko” Elementary School in Zagreb – where a young man killed one student, and injured three students and a teacher on the school premises – were reminiscent of the tragic scenes from “Vladislav Ribnikar” Elementary School in Belgrade the year prior. It underscored the lack of significant progress in ensuring the safety of children in schools.
The murder and events at “Precko” Elementary School prompted citizens in Zagreb and several other places to take to the streets, demanding better safety measures in schools.
The past year also brought significant progress, particularly for Romania and Bulgaria. These two countries first joined the air segment of the Schengen Zone on March 1st, and by the end of the year, a decision was made allowing them to fully join its land borders as full-fledged members starting January 1st, 2025, after earlier blockades.
Montenegro made progress on the European path, successfully closing three chapters. However, Croatia blocked the fourth chapter due to a prior resolution in the Montenegrin Parliament concerning the atrocities at Jasenovac during World War II.
Albania saw the announcement of initial negotiations within a new cluster framework, while BiH remained stalled, having failed to make the necessary reforms. As a result, it was excluded from the European Commission’s list for 70 million euros in aid.
Serbia also ended the year without a positive opinion from the European Union (EU) Council for opening new negotiation chapters, primarily due to unresolved relations with Kosovo, leaving its EU progress stalled.
North Macedonia at NATO’s helm, Slovenia recognizes Palestine
North Macedonia concluded the year as the only Western Balkan state to secure one of the highest positions within NATO. Former Macedonian Deputy Prime Minister Radmila Sekerinska became NATO’s Deputy Secretary General.
Croatian citizens went to the polls three times during the year: first in the spring for parliamentary elections, then to elect European Parliament representatives, and finally at the end of the year to vote in the presidential election.
Despite this so-called “super year” with three trips to the polls, Croatian citizens will return to the polling stations again in early 2025 for the second round of the presidential election.
Parliamentary elections were held in Serbia during the first half of the year, while citizens in BiH elected local governments in October.
In BiH, the year was also marked by the trial of Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik before the BiH Court. The BiH Prosecutor’s Office accused him of failing to implement the decisions of the High Representative Christian Schmidt.
Slovenia faced several crises, prompting the resignation of two female ministers during the year.
At the end of the year, the Slovenian Parliament legally banned the use of Nazi and fascist symbols. Midyear, Slovenia became one of the few European countries to recognize Palestine within the 1967 borders.
The fight against illegal migration remained at the top of the agenda for Western Balkan countries at the request of the European Commission. To this end, a special agreement was reached with BiH to sign a cooperation deal with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex).
Italy sought to negotiate with Albania to return migrants to two asylum centers built by Italian authorities on the Albanian coast. However, this process was repeatedly contested by Italian courts, AA writes.
