25 August - 1 September 2026 | Weekly Regional Briefing

This week's briefing is dominated by the death of Ratko Mladić in UN detention in The Hague, an event that has reopened old wounds across the region and drawn a sharp response from Belgrade. We also look at the 16 September verdict date now set for Hashim Thaçi and three co-defendants at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers, Montenegro's adoption of constitutional amendments overhauling its Judicial and Prosecutorial Councils, and the opening of a corruption trial against North Macedonia's former First Deputy Prime Minister.

Serbia: Mladić Dies in Hague Detention, Vučić Accuses UN Court of "Uncivilised Behaviour"

Ratko Mladić, the former Bosnian Serb army commander convicted of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, died on 27 August aged 84 at the UN Detention Unit in The Hague, a week after the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals rejected his latest bid for early release on humanitarian grounds. Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić accused the court of "uncivilised behaviour" for refusing to release him, reviving debate in Belgrade over Serbia's relationship with the tribunal's legacy just as the region marks three decades since the wars of the 1990s.

Source: European Western Balkans

Bosnia and Herzegovina: Republika Srpska Marks Mladić's Death With Public Tributes Despite Glorification Ban

Hundreds marched through the streets of Zvornik chanting Mladić's name in the days after his death, with further tributes reported in towns across Republika Srpska, even though glorifying convicted war criminals remains prohibited under Bosnian law. Many of those marching were too young to have lived through the 1992-95 war, underscoring concerns among rule-of-law observers that the legal ban on glorification is going largely unenforced in the RS entity.

Source: Balkan Insight

Kosovo: Hague Court Sets 16 September Date for Thaçi War Crimes Verdict

The Kosovo Specialist Chambers has scheduled the trial judgment in the case against former President Hashim Thaçi and co-defendants Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi for 16 September, ending months of delay in one of the region's most closely watched war crimes proceedings. Prosecutors sought 45 years' imprisonment for each of the four former KLA leaders on charges including murder, torture and illegal detention; Thaçi has said publicly he expects acquittal, and activists have installed public countdown clocks in Pristina and across Kosovo's municipalities.

Source: Balkan Insight

Montenegro: Parliament Adopts Constitutional Overhaul of Judicial and Prosecutorial Councils

Montenegro's parliament held a special August session to adopt amendments restructuring the Judicial Council and Prosecutorial Council and reinforcing central bank independence, a benchmark tied to closing EU accession Chapter 23 by year end. The reform removes the Justice Minister from the Judicial Council and rebalances both bodies toward judges, prosecutors and independent legal experts, though opposition MPs warned during the debate that it hands the judiciary excessive, unchecked power.

Source: Srpske Novine

North Macedonia: Corruption Trial Opens Against Ex-Deputy PM Grubi Over €8.2m Lottery Scandal

The trial of former First Deputy Prime Minister Artan Grubi and seven co-defendants opened this week in Skopje, months after he was arrested as a fugitive and formally indicted over the state lottery's purchase of video terminals that could never be lawfully operated, at a cost of more than €8.2 million to the public purse. The case is one of North Macedonia's highest-profile corruption prosecutions and a test of the judiciary's independence from political pressure.

Source: Balkan Insight