Bulgaria’s President, Georgi Parvanov, stated that the country was striving to develop positive business and political relations with the Russian Federation. Parvanov made the statements in an interview for the German Sueddeutsche Zeitung published Monday and cited by the Russian news agency ITAR-TASS. “There are so many great traditions shared …

Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini says the attitude of the European Union towards Serbia “has not been good as of lately”. To the remark that he had recently presented an eight-point plan for a speedier EU integration of the Balkans, he underlined that many were wrong to believe that all …

Croat President Stipe Mesic has insisted on an appeal to the International Court of Justice in order to settle its border dispute with Slovenia. His comments followed press reports of a European Union proposed arbitration plan. “A court must establish the facts and Croatia will accept any decision reached by …

The son of the uncontested Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) leader, the late Alija Izetbegovic, says he’ll pull out of politics if he fails to become the new president of the ruling Bosnian Party of Democratic Action, SDA. With this statement, the usually cautious Bakir Izetbegovic has apparently gone beyond the point …

Serbian President Boris Tadic’s visit to Kosovo over the weekend should be viewed as a private religious visit by a Serbian citizen, argues the speaker of Kosovo’s Assembly, Jakup Krasniqi. Tadic entered Kosovo on Friday after initially requesting a visit from the European Union office in Belgrade, in order to …

Recognitions of Kosovo’s independence will continue before and after the decision by the World Court on its legality, says the International Crisis Group’s Sabine Freizer. “It will be good that the decision by the International Court of Justice shall not (explicitly) outline that the declaration of independence was illegal,” said …

Saudi Arabia has recognised Kosovo’s independence, reports Kosovo’s public broadcast network, Radio Television Kosovo, RTK, on Monday. “In accordance to religious and cultural ties with the population of Kosovo, and as a sign of respect for the Kosovo population’s willpower to win independence, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia notifies its …

A recount in Moldova’s disputed election, ordered after violent protests against a Communist victory, will produce no changes in the standing of parties in parliament, a top official says. Election officials proceeded with the recount after Communist President Vladimir Voronin said such as step could re-establish trust in the former …

Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday said U.S. efforts to tame the growing Taliban insurgency through negotiations would fail unless his government agreed to such talks. The Obama administration has announced it will send more troops and economic assistance to Afghanistan as well as intensify diplomacy within the region in …

Greek hints that it approves of the UN’s latest proposal “Republic of Northern Macedonia” as a compromise name for Macedonia has been met with a cold reception by the leadership in Skopje. Speaking at a Washington-held conference dedicated to United States policy towards the Balkans, the Greek Ambassador to the …