Civil society groups highlight lack of progress on LGBTQI+ rights in Ukraine in shadow report In 2025, the monitoring network of the LGBT Human Rights Nash Svit Center recorded 60 incidents based on h...

Aleksandar Vucic's election defeat could ease Serbia's quarrels with Bosnia, Kosovo and Montenegro and revive the stalled EU hopes of the whole Western Balkans, analysts say.

Ukrainian anti-corruption agencies face searches, surveillance and political pressure, shadow report for the European Commission says The shadow report is an independent assessment by civil society or...

Shadow report for European Commission highlights gaps in ombudsman legislation in Ukraine Throughout 2025 and 2026, the number of appeals to Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman has been growing, yet the ...

An informal Commission's document sets out draft legal texts for the proposed safeguard clauses in future accessions. Here is everything you need to know

Council of Europe calls on Ukraine to allow alternative service for believers during war Thirteen criminal proceedings were also opened against Jehovah's Witnesses under Article 402 of the Criminal Co...

Ukraine lacks independent regulator for personal data protection, shadow report concludes In the 2025 report, the European Commission noted that Ukraine has not achieved significant changes in the sph...

Council of Europe urges Ukraine to adopt laws against discrimination and hate crimes The commission highlighted several positive developments. Among other things, the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner...

Serbia has met the terms to open the next block of its EU accession talks but member states are blocking it over backsliding on democracy, Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos said.

Although absent from the Student List's programme, elected MP calls for a public debate in Serbia, while seeking to build "as close ties as possible" on reforms

Consumption, investment and the prospect of EU accession buoy the EU-aspiring region, with growth expected at 3.2% this year, according to wiiw's forecast.

Enlargement Commissioner said Montenegro must resolve bilateral issues with Croatia to secure unanimous support from EU member states, although these disputes are not formally part of the accession negotiations.

Diplomats say Budapest blocked a step to initiate the unlocking of two final negotiation clusters, covering agriculture, environment and transport.

Ukraine recognises LGBTQI+ protection as state policy priority On 12 October 2026, the president of Ukraine signed Decree No 1038/2026 approving the new National Human Rights Strategy. The full LGBTQI...

Ukraine and Moldova opened two more clusters of EU accession talks in Luxembourg on October 13, leaving only two of the six still closed to them, Ukraine's foreign ministry said.

Negotiations between Albania and the EU have been provisionally finalised on Chapter 20, bringing the total number to 4 and confirming the positive momentum

All 27 European Union member states have agreed to open two more EU accession negotiating clusters for Ukraine and Moldova. Ireland’s Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence, Thomas Byrne, announced the decision. In a post on Twitter, he announced that an agreement had been reached and outlined a number of EU enlargement decisions […] Post EU Agrees to Open Two More Negotiating Clusters for Ukraine: Decision Supported by All 27 Countries at Root-Nation.com.

Bulgaria and North Macedonia disagree over the conditions and timeframe for North Macedonia's EU accession, despite an agreement to maintain dialogue.

Moldova and Ukraine have so far been coupled in the enlargement process, but some EU diplomats reportedly believe that decoupling is increasingly likely.

Although not legally binding, the Commission's proposal focuses on pre-enlargement gradual integration, new safeguards and passerelle clauses

Brussels has backed Podgorica’s ambition to complete accession negotiations by the end of 2026 and become the bloc’s 28th member in 2028.