—NOTE: Washington further indicated that it is prepared to present its own candidates for the position if necessary.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—❗️🇧🇦/🇷🇺 UPDATE: Russian Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina stated that it is now time to permanently close the Office of the High Representative (OHR).

➡️ Moscow has long maintained that the office’s mandate, established under the Dayton Accords, should be concluded.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—❗️🇧🇦/🇷🇺 WATCH: The Russian Ambassador to the UN Security Council has labeled the Office of the High Representative (OHR) as the primary source of instability in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

➡️ Moscow accused Christian Schmidt of hypocritically blaming Republika Srpska and the Serbs for the consequences of his own actions, insisting that the office must be closed immediately.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—❗️🇧🇦/🇨🇳 UPDATE: China’s ambassador to the UN has stated that Beijing does not recognize Christian Schmidt as a legitimate High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, noting that he was never confirmed by the Security Council.

➡️ China emphasized that the OHR and the Bonn Powers are strictly temporary arrangements and should not be allowed to become permanent fixtures.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—❗️🇧🇦/🇷🇸 NEW: The BBC reports that Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik is positioned as the primary beneficiary of Christian Schmidt’s departure from the role of High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—UPDATE: Milan Knežević, leader of the Democratic People’s Party (DNP), has officially launched a campaign to withdraw Montenegro’s recognition of Kosovo, which he termed a “historic shame”.

➡️ Knežević framed the movement as an “institutional battle” intended to eventually reach the national Parliament and provide support to Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇦🇱/🇮🇱 NEW: PM Edi Rama praised the deep bilateral relations between Albania and Israel during the Albania-Israel Innovation Summit, declaring that Albania remains a home for Jews.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—❗️🇷🇸/🇺🇸 NEW: Serbia has officially launched its first-ever joint military exercise with NATO.

➡️ The two-week tactical exercise, titled “NATO–Serbia,” began on May 12 and is scheduled to run until May 23 at the "South" base and the "Borovac" training ground near Bujanovac.

➡️ Approximately 600 troops from Serbia, Italy, Romania, and Türkiye are participating in the drills. The exercise focuses on practicing tactics and procedures used in peacekeeping operations, including base security, checkpoint operations, crowd control, and urban combat scenarios.

➡️ Serbian officials emphasized that the cooperation aims to preserve regional peace and stability while maintaining the country’s policy of military neutrality.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇲🇪/🇪🇺 NEW: Montenegro has moved significantly closer to European Union membership, with EU member states officially approving the establishment of an ad hoc working group to draft the country’s Accession Treaty.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇦🇱/🇮🇹 NEW: Albania’s FM has confirmed that the country will not renew its agreement with Italy regarding the hosting of migration processing centers once the current deal expires in 2030.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—❗️🇷🇸 (🇧🇦) /🇺🇸 NEW: Željka Cvijanović, the Serb member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, has commenced a three-day official visit to the United States.

➡️ Her itinerary opened with a meeting with Republican Congressman Randy Fine, with discussions focused on Bosnia’s constitutional framework and the official position of Republika Srpska regarding the country's ongoing political developments.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇺🇸/🇽🇰 WATCH: US Congressman Keith Self has introduced a House resolution advocating for the full integration of Kosovo into NATO.

➡️ The resolution urges non-recognizing NATO allies—specifically Greece, Romania, Slovakia, and Spain—to formally recognize Kosovo's independence to remove existing barriers to its membership in the alliance.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇺🇸/🇺🇦 POLITICO: NATO chief Mark Rutte has asked allies to devote 0.25 percent of GDP to Ukraine as he seeks to ease growing tensions within the alliance over aid to Kyiv.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇷🇸 (🇧🇦) ❌ 🇺🇦 NEW: Milorad Dodik claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attempted to secure approximately $400 million worth of ammunition from Bosniak political structures in Bosnia and Herzegovina without the required consent of Republika Srpska.

➡️ According to Dodik, an advance payment was made for the munitions, but the transaction was ultimately blocked due to the lack of entity-level approval, with Dodik stressing that no exports will pass through official channels without his entity's consent.

🔗 Dunav Intel

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🪖🇽🇰 NEW: Kosovo is rapidly building up its modern army while continuing its diplomatic push for full international recognition.

➡️ According to Bloomberg, the defense roadmap includes a planned allocation of over €1B to procure advanced armed drones, Javelin anti-tank systems, specialized defensive hardware, and to significantly ramp up domestic military production capabilities.

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

🇧🇬 Bulgaria's DARA wins Eurovision 2026 with "Bangaranga"

➡️ Israel came 2nd despite 5 countries boycotting the event entirely over its participation.

➡️ Bulgaria's first Eurovision win in history.

🔗 Mario Nawfal

✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English