—🇭🇺/🇲🇰 NEW: Hungary’s 4iG-backed One enters North Macedonia as third mobile operator.

➡️ One Macedonia Telecommunications is a subsidiary of Hungary’s 4iG Group and has been selected and licensed as North Macedonia’s third mobile operator, with 5G spectrum rights across several bands.

➡️ The company has a multi‑year licence and rollout obligations, including initial 5G coverage of at least one city by March 2027 and nationwide 5G coverage by 2030, alongside existing duopoly players Makedonski Telekom and A1.

➡️ 4iG is indeed Hungarian, state‑aligned and expanding regionally under the ONE brand in Albania and Montenegro, and has been repeatedly described as closely tied to Viktor Orbán and his government, including in defence-sector deals and diplomatic lobbying.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—👁🇲🇰 NEW: The Parliament of North Macedonia has approved the “Safe City” law to install AI-powered surveillance cameras across the country, after the government pushed it through with backing from a far-left party.

➡️ Albanian opposition parties voted against, accusing the government of targeting ethnic Albanians by concentrating cameras in Albanian-majority cities, while critics warn the project will deepen mass surveillance and instill fear among citizens.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

💡 You have a project and want to show it to the world?

At Balkan Spectator, we are looking for long-term partners and sponsors.

🤝 We’re looking for people with inspiring and meaningful projects who want to share their work with a wider audience.

What we offer is a healthy, clean and friendly space and a very specific target audience from the Balkans and Balkan-interested profiles.

📞 We are open to negotiate price and conditions, so please, feel free to reach out through the channel's direct messages!

—🇷🇴/🇲🇩 NEW: Romanian President Nicușor Dan rejected calls for a referendum on uniting Romania with Moldova, arguing there is no basis to hold one as long as a majority in Moldova does not support unification and prefers the EU path.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—UPDATE: Pakistan’s Punjab province has expressed interest in Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) information on study opportunities at Bulgarian universities, signaling growing educational ties between Bulgaria and Pakistan’s most populous province.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—❗️🇷🇸❌🇧🇦 URGENT: Leader of the ruling SNSD in Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, said Srpska must decide whether to remain within the Dayton Agreement or withdraw its consent, claiming the latest decision of the Constitutional Court has undermined the accord.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—A new survey shows Europeans are most likely to choose Spain and Croatia for their holidays, while French, Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese, Greeks and Turks are most likely to vacation in their own countries instead.

🔗 Visegrád 24

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

🇹🇷🫒Turkey's olive oil production reached 505,000 tonnes, a 135% year-on-year increase

It is now the second biggest olive oil producer worldwide, having overtaken Italy

—❗️🇮🇱/🇷🇸 UPDATE: New possible transfer of Serbian munitions to Israel, according to Dunav Intel.

➡️ Flight LOY847 (Boeing 747-412F, reg. 4X-ICK) operated by Israel’s Challenge Airlines IL departed Tel Aviv, landed in Belgrade, and is expected to return to Israel’s Nevatim Air Base near Beersheba.

🔗 Dunav Intel

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇵🇱❌💸 NEW: Poland’s Finance Minister Andrzej Domanski says Warsaw has no plans to join the Eurozone any time soon, arguing that Poland’s economic growth outpaces that of most euro-area economies and that public opinion clearly favors keeping the national currency, the Zloty.

🔗 Visegrád 24

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇧🇬 NEW: Iliana Iotova officially became Bulgaria's first female president on 23 January 2026, ahead of the planned snap election to complete Radev's presidential term, according to our source in the country.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English