Quantum & Croatia’s Science Pride: Nobel Prize-winning physicist John M. Martinis received Croatia’s Grand Order of King Dmitar Zvonimir from President Milanović, spotlighting macroscopic quantum phenomena in superconductors and his ties to Croatian academia. Autonomous Tech at Sea: Croatia’s Adria Autonomous Boat Team stood out at the Monaco Energy Boat Challenge, winning key AI-class races using onboard sensors and neural navigation. Defense Tech in Europe: AeroVironment’s JUMP 20 unmanned aircraft system gained an MQ-31A military designation from Italy’s MoD, moving it into the Italian Army’s official capability lineup. NATO Multi-Domain Experimentation: Italy led NATO’s Task Force X-Central Mediterranean, integrating crewed and uncrewed systems across land, sea, air, cyber and space to test emerging technologies on the Southern Flank. Water Under Pressure in the Adriatic: New research highlights managed aquifer recharge as a practical way to protect groundwater as tourism, heat and saltwater intrusion strain coastal supplies. EU Enlargement & Research Chapters: Albania provisionally closed negotiation chapters including Science and Research, while Ukraine and Moldova opened Cluster 6—progress that depends heavily on politics, not just readiness. Croatian Media Law Push: The Croatian Journalists’ Association urged decriminalising offences against honour and reputation, warning the Anti-SLAPP Act doesn’t cover criminal proceedings. World Cup Tech Controversy: FIFA’s Connected Ball and VAR rules remain under fire after the England–Norway spidercam dispute, with FIFA insisting there was “no evidence” of cable contact.