Synopsis

Public support for the two leading candidates is nearly evenly divided, making it extremely difficult to identify a clear frontrunner

Nearly every summer, tensions between Turkey and Greece rise in step with national elections on either side of the Aegean; this time, however, both countries’ nationalistic discourses are reaching an unprecedented fever pitch.

A recently published academic article explains the nature of contemporary Bosnian-Turkish relations as a collision of myth and reality.

EU inaction, stalled accessions, and government divergence from EU reform have created “stabilitocracies” in the Western Balkans. This poses a significant test for the EU’s role as a promoter of democracy in the region, says a recent report by the Netherlands’ Clingendael think-tank.

A documentary film produced by the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs at Georgetown University analyzes how Turkey under President Erdogan’s political Islamist rule uses Islam to increase its soft power in Bosnia and how it is perceived by Bosnian Muslims.

In what may be one of its most critical annual reports on Turkey to date, the EU warns the candidate country to beware of democratic backsliding, citing its worrying track record with regard to rule of law and rights and freedoms. It also highlights heated foreign policy disagreements.

FeniksTalk’s recent event examined the global environmental crisis from the perspectives of international law and local economies, underlining that diverse and comprehensive legal and economic policies should be applied to cope with climate change.

Internet and media freedoms continue to decline in Turkey under strict control of President Erdogan’s government stated Gurkan Ozturan from the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) in FeniksPod’s latest episode.

Only 19 of Kosovo’s 31 embassies abroad currently have ambassadors. This marks a significant failure on the part of the government just as the country needs diplomatic strength to fortify its position as an independent state.

FeniksPolitik organized its first in-house event on the future of NATO and the challenges it faces in confronting a changing Middle East, the US pivot to Asia, increasing presence of Russia and China in the region and intra-alliance tensions tied to a Turkey in democratic decline.