Serbia: Political Earthquake After the Election
The outcome of Serbia’s election has fundamentally shaken the political system Aleksandar Vučić has spent fourteen years building.
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Bulgaria’s Status Quo Remains Intact
Iliana Iotova has won the second round of Bulgaria’s presidential election, securing 57.6 percent of the vote, while her opponent, the pro-Western Andrey Gyurov, who advocated support for Ukraine, received 39.5 percent.
Poland’s Political Standoff Has Escalated into a Constitutional Crisis
The long-running dispute between the Polish government and the president over the composition and functioning of the Constitutional Tribunal has deepened into an open institutional confrontation. Further escalation appears inevitable, while a resolution remains nowhere in sight.
Polish Domestic Politics Trapped in a Culture War
Poland is an economic success story, with three decades of uninterrupted growth. Domestically, however, the country is becoming increasingly paralysed by the confrontation between opposing political camps.
Elections in the Balkans: Which Way Is Southeastern Europe Heading?
The Serbian election and the first round of Bulgaria’s presidential election both suggest that political forces in Southeastern Europe are shifting.
The Great Tax Overhaul of Hungary
This Monday, Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar made significant announcements on 6th October via video message regarding Hungary’s tax system.
Debt brakes and vetoes: Slovakia, Czechia and Poland test their fiscal limits
Slovakia, Czechia and Poland are all writing 2027 budgets that push against their own debt and deficit limits. Defence is the obvious culprit, but weak growth, the energy shock and rising interest bills are doing just as much damage.
Poland’s Dilemma: Would It Go to the Defence of the Baltic States?
In an analysis published on September 28, Marcin Wyrwał, a journalist with Onet, raised a question that at first glance concerns Poland’s military commitments but in fact touches on the credibility of NATO’s entire eastern flank
Slovak coalition partner helps oust Environment Minister, putting Fico’s parliamentary majority under pressure
Slovakia’s governing coalition faces renewed uncertainty after seven MPs from the junior coalition SNS joined the opposition to oust Environment Minister Tomáš Taraba.
Romania once again in political turbulence: three options remain for Nicușor Dan
Romania is facing a political crisis, with the stakes now extending to fiscal stabilisation and access to EU funds.
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Poland Goes to the Polls Next Year – What Are the Main Political Fault Lines?
For a long time, Polish politics was shaped by competition between two blocs of roughly similar size: the centre and the far right. The next parliamentary election, however, is likely to be different, as the political formation to the right of the centre is becoming increasingly fragmented.
How Poland Is Grappling with Rising Fuel Prices
Polish motorists are seeing increasingly higher figures on petrol-station price boards, and for now there is little indication that prices will return to the much lower levels seen at the beginning of the summer anytime soon.
The Drone War Is Knocking on Poland’s Door
Russia is deploying increasingly sophisticated jet-powered drones in the immediate vicinity of the Ukrainian-Polish border, while a recent Polish military analysis suggests that Warsaw’s armed forces have still not fully adapted to the type of warfare that has already become commonplace in Ukraine.
Is Prague Airport about to be privatised?
The Babiš government is weighing partial privatisations of explosives maker Explosia and Letiště Praha, the operator of Václav Havel Airport, but the Prime Minister and First Deputy PM Karel Havlíček (both ANO) are advancing markedly different justifications for the sales.
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Poland Takes Off with Offshore Wind Energy
On July 10, a new chapter began in Poland’s history: for the first time, electricity generated by an offshore wind farm entered the country’s national power grid.
How Did the V4 React to the AfD’s Historic Victory?
The reaction in the Visegrád countries to the Alternative for Germany (AfD) victory in Sunday’s Saxony-Anhalt state election was far from uniform.
High-Speed Rail Reform in Poland: Trains Set to Race at 250 km/h
Polish media report that travel time between Warsaw and Kraków could fall to less than two hours.
Hungary’s Return to the EU: Already Underway, But Far from Complete
Based on the developments in Hungary over the past few days, it would be difficult to argue that relations between Hungary and the European Union are simply returning to where they were before Viktor Orbán came to power.
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Czech Chamber overrides Pavel’s veto, clears way for looser fiscal rules
The Czech Chamber of Deputies overrode President Petr Pavel's veto of a fiscal-rules omnibus bill clearing the way for a law that lets the government exceed budget ceilings on defence and infrastructure spending through 2036, a move the opposition says it will challenge at the Constitutional Court.
Prague's budget war: a new chapter of castle and government struggle
The Czech Chamber is due to vote on overriding the President's veto of a fiscal-rules bill on 25 August. Not just defence spending is at stake, but the next presidential election, where the President is increasingly viewed by the Czech public as the head of the opposition.
Romania’s Political Crisis: Deadlock Over Government Formation and EU Funds
The domestic political paralysis could have serious economic consequences: the caretaker government is running out of time ahead of the August 31 deadline set by Brussels.
Polish Dilemma: Fugitive Criminal or Political Refugee?
It puts the former Polish ruling party in an uncomfortable position that its former deputy justice minister is hiding from the justice system in territories outside the reach of the law.
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When the Danube runs dry - How CEE's power systems are coping with the 2026 heat-drought
Hungary and Romania are living through their most serious energy crisis in decades, as record-low Danube levels have all but shut down two of the region's nuclear plants.
Why Have Czech and Slovak Nuclear Power Plants Been Able to Withstand the Heat While Paks Has Run into Trouble?
In Hungary, low Danube water levels and a prolonged heatwave have created an acute energy crisis, while other countries in the region appear to have weathered the situation more easily. Part of the explanation lies in the differences between the cooling systems used by their nuclear power plants.
Cracks in Poland’s Right: Is PiS Falling Apart?
For a long time, it seemed that the return to power of Poland’s illiberal right – allied with Orbán and highly effective at blocking Donald Tusk’s government – was merely a matter of time. But those plans could now be derailed by an emerging split within the party.
Hungary joins Poland-led AI Gigafactory bid
Hungary is joining the Poland-led AI Gigafactory consortium that already includes Czechia and Lithuania, marking a significant upgrade from the country's previous position as one of the EU's lighter-touch "AI Factory Antenna" participants.
Romania shoots down Russian drones on home soil for the first time
A Romanian F-16 destroyed a Russian-made drone over the Black Sea on July 24.
Defence spending is driving the Czech budget off course
Czechia's 2026 deficit is running nearly a full percentage point above what the outgoing Fiala government projected and the single largest reason is a defence-spending trajectory that Prime Minister Babiš campaigned against but has since chosen to continue.
The Polish Press on Hungary's Change of Government: Parallels and Differences
Is Hungary now facing the same political turmoil that has characterized Poland for years? According to the Polish press, not necessarily.
Polish Economy: Slowdown or a Change of Economic Model?
Poland, often described as the “success story” of the European economy, is sending mixed signals. There is no immediate crisis, but the country’s industrial sector is showing weaker figures than before, raising the possibility of stagnation or even a decline.