The economies of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), which experienced a period of stagnation last year, are poised for a modest revival in 2024, but both the Russian and Turkish economies are already overheating.
Hungarian PM Viktor Orban’s close ties with leaders of Serbia and Bosnia’s Republika Srpska have encouraged nationalism and authoritarian tendencies with negative consequences for stability, says paper published by EPC.
Milojko Spajic's government tries to seize window of opportunity, but still risks derailment by domestic political conflicts.
Candidate states for EU accession such as Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia remain in a zone of insecurity where Russia can intervene minimally in a hybrid way.
Albania has been transformed from an isolated country whose name evoked poverty, drugs and crime to an increasingly prominent player on the world stage.
Moldova and Montenegro already targets of Russian destabilisation efforts, says RUSI report.
Eurosceptics' ability to exploit protests will test the EU's potential to influence its Eastern Neighbourhood. At the same time, electoral cycles in Eastern Europe favour the consolidation and perpetuation of autocracies.
Concerns are growing over candidate country Serbia's democratic institutions and lack of alignment with EU foreign policy, says comment published by ECFR.
BMI analysts say Hungary, Ireland and Slovakia to be worst affected, but no major impact on GDP unless Middle East conflict persists.
The Hungarian-Russian factor, combined and separately, entails risks to the sustainability of the enlargement process of the European project.