Bosnians vote in elections that may affect their accession to the European Union and American and Russian influence in the Balkans

Bosnians went to the polls today (Sunday) in elections that may affect their country's efforts to join the European Union and the influence that the United States and Russia seek to exercise over this small country in the Balkan region.

Voters voted to choose members of Bosnia's tripartite presidency and its national parliament, in addition to regional legislative elections in the two federal entities that make up the state.

Voter frustration increased; Due to the slowdown in the economy, the slow pace of talks to join the European Union, and the continuing political crisis, as the dominant, predominantly ethnic parties in the two entities have repeatedly obstructed the decisions of the weak central government that links them.

Bosnia obtained the status of a candidate country for European Union membership in December 2022, and the green light to begin negotiations to join the bloc in 2024, but the actual negotiations have not yet begun because local political leaders have not yet implemented basic requirements such as strengthening judicial oversight and approving anti-corruption laws.

The Central Elections Commission is expected to announce the preliminary results later in the day, after polling stations close at seven in the evening (17:00 GMT).

A bridge over the Dnieper River in Kiev was attacked by a drone on Sunday, according to the city's mayor, shortly after the German Chancellor arrived in the Ukrainian capital on a previously unannounced visit.

Vitali Klitschko said in a post on the Telegram application that an object collided with “the roof of the North Bridge.” Emergency services went to the scene.” Shortly before that, sirens sounded warning of drones approaching the city, according to what was reported by Agence France-Presse.

Unannounced visit

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in Kiev earlier today, accompanied by CEOs of German defense companies, in a gesture of support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky with the escalation of Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities.

German government officials said that Meretz will announce a package of measures that includes providing one billion euros in military aid and 350 million euros for reforms in the energy sector. The visit is also expected to finalize an agreement for the joint production of different types of drones.

Mertz said: “I traveled to Kiev today because Ukraine needs all our support in the coming weeks,” noting that Russian forces are bombing towns, residential buildings, and heating plants. He added: “If Russia is not stopped, its war machine will turn against us sooner or later,” according to Reuters.

He continued: “I will tell President Zelensky today: You can continue to count on our help.”

The German Chancellor is accompanied by the Minister of Economy, Katrina Reiche, and an economic delegation that includes executives from Siemens Energy, Hensult, Diehl Defense, Quantum Systems, and other companies.

Merz is also expected to urge the Ukrainian government to make progress on reforms requested by EU partners, including the fight against corruption.

Drone deal

Zelensky said on Wednesday, after a phone call with Meretz, that Ukraine would soon finalize the agreement with Germany to produce drones, missiles and related software.

It is expected that much of the focus will be on the rapid production of anti-jet drones, which Quantum, a German defense technology company, has successfully tested. Since the summer, Russia has been using dozens of high-speed attack drones daily to target civilian and military infrastructure.

In April, Quantum and the Ukrainian manufacturer WYY Drones announced the establishment of Quantum WIY Industries, a joint venture to produce the Strela interceptor drone and related air defense technologies.

The agreement also includes the joint development and production of weapons with a range of more than 1,000 kilometers that Ukraine can use to launch attacks deep into Russia.

Government officials said increased cooperation would allow money and technology to flow into the Federal Republic, as weapons could be produced and defenses strengthened against drones targeting critical infrastructure.

Merz said on Thursday that Germany would not be intimidated by the increase in the number of hybrid attacks launched by Russia on European countries.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said, in a statement yesterday (Saturday), that Moscow will continue to systematically strike targets in Ukraine, while saying that these are retaliatory strikes for Ukrainian attacks on Russia in the past few months. It warned foreign nationals and employees of diplomatic missions against staying in or traveling to Ukraine.

Zelensky told Reuters on Saturday that his country's armed forces would intensify their attacks on oil refineries in Russia in response to Moscow's "new doctrine" of escalating attacks on civilian infrastructure, which he said aims to force residents of Kiev and other cities to flee.

The Paris police chief said on Saturday that the student protest movement that had spread across France was now "out of control" and urged protesters to return to peaceful methods, warning that the authorities would respond firmly to acts of violence and vandalism.

Riot police clashed with high school students across France on Friday, and unions called on teachers to strike as President Emmanuel Macron's government struggles to contain increasingly violent protests over classroom conditions and funding.

Since Monday, the authorities have arrested about five thousand people, most of them teenagers, across the country, and dozens have been injured.

National Police spokeswoman Agat Foucault told RTL radio on Saturday that more than 600 police officers were also injured.

Teachers and citizens were attacked, while property damage was estimated at tens of millions of euros.

Paris Police Chief Patrice Faure said in a message published on the “X” platform before the new protests scheduled to start next Tuesday that those who launched this movement no longer control it, and called on students to abandon school closures, stop the riots, and adopt peaceful forms of protest.

“It is time to return to peaceful forms of action,” Fore wrote, noting that parents also bear responsibility for distancing their children from what he described as the influence of “professional hooligans” and their supporters.

Student unions called for a national day of protests on Tuesday. Security officials fear that the organized protests in central Paris in particular will lead to more violence, amid fears that anarchist groups affiliated with the far-left movement will seize control of the movement.

Students erecting barricades in front of secondary schools have expressed anger at overcrowded classrooms, a persistent teacher shortage, and the deteriorating condition of buildings, which they blame on a lack of investment that has persisted for years.