ethnic conflict
Reports on ethnic conflict See all →

Kosovo and Serbia: An incomplete peace

The toughest nut to crack in the Balkans remains resolving the Kosovo-Serbia conflict. Recently, the U.S. has stepped further into the fray, jockeying with the EU for primacy in leading the negotiations. At the same time, the regime in Belgrade has strengthened, while in Pristina, the third government in a year has just taken over. It all bodes poorly for a speedy resolution.

Opinion: Jihadists open a new front in West Africa
Since the mid-2010s, countries in the Gulf of Guinea have seen an increase in terrorist attacks. Lax border control allows jihadist violence to spread rapidly through preexisting criminal networks. National authorities are taking measures to counter the threat, but the issue will need to be addressed from a regional perspective ...


The geopolitics of a Kosovo-Serbia deal
Normalizing relations between Serbia and Kosovo has proved surprisingly difficult. After the European Union’s protracted Brussels Dialogue (2012-2019) stalled last year, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron have stepped in with a new effort at mediation. If it fails, the Western Balkans could end up waiting another ...


In postelection DRC, transition looks like restoration
After delaying elections for two years, former DRC President Joseph Kabila hit upon a clever stratagem to resolve his “third-term” problem. Borrowing a page from Vladimir Putin’s book, he appears to have arranged for a stand-in, nominally from the opposition, to win the presidency in a manipulated ballot. Mr. Kabila ...


Mali’s two wars
Mali, aided by France and several other countries in the region, is waging a war against jihadist terrorists based in the north of its territory. But Bamako is also conducting a political, social and economic war against ethnic populations in the north who want more autonomy. Though France’s involvement has ...
