Putin wants Western Balkans as his next ‘playground,’ UK warns – POLITICO

“At this time, with war in Europe and seeing the long hand of Russian interference also in the region, you would be a fool if you took your eye off the Western Balkans, where there are still legacy issues that are yet to be overcome,” British Foreign Secretary David Lammy told POLITICO during a visit to the region last week. “Putin’s interests here are to keep the region destabilized. It’s in his interests to keep the countries that make up the Western Balkans on edge, to have a destabilized population and to wage a cyber and hybrid war.” All six