Serbia’s decision to join NATO would have negative effects on its relations with Russia, Konstantin Kosachev said. “For us, such a decision would be inexplicable and would have a negative effect on relations between Russia and Serbia,” the Chairman of the Duma Committee on International Affairs said. “A possible decision …

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved three-year arrangements for the Republic of Moldova under the Extended Credit Facility and the Extended Fund Facility. With each facility providing an equal amount, the combined financial assistance will be equivalent to SDR 369.6 million (about US$574.4 million) to …

The interim trade agreement between the European Union and Serbia officially comes into force on February 1st. The Chief of EU delegation in Serbia, Vincent Degert told the press in Belgrade that the economic significance of a full implementation of the Interim Agreement is that Serbia will be more attractive …

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has arrived in Cyprus on a mission to re-energise peace talks between the island’s estranged Greek and Turkish communities. Their leaders have been engaged in 17 months of open-ended negotiations which have achieved some movement on the key issue of power-sharing under a federal model, but …

The trial against former Defence Minister Berislav Roncevic and his assistant, Ivo Bacic, began in a Zagreb court Friday (January 29th). The anti-corruption office, USKOK, charged them in late October with abuse of power over a 2004 procurement deal involving military trucks. Prosecutors say the contract cost the state millions …

Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said on Saturday (January 30th) that Western Balkan countries have made significant progress and are moving fast along their road to EU integration.Bildt acknowledged some open issues in the region, but said the situation is nevertheless much better than in the last six months of …

Efforts to improve ties between Turkey and Armenia and to open their common border might fail, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said after meeting with Armenian counterpart Edward Nalbandian on Friday (January 29th). Speaking to journalists in London on the sidelines of an international conference on Afghanistan, Davutoglu said that …

Persons who are convicted in Bosnia and Herzegovina will no longer be able to escape to neighbouring countries, and criminals who flee to Bosnia will not be able to dodge justice, according to an agreement adopted on Thursday. The agreement was adopted by the Bosnian tripartite Presidency on January 28 …

The trail of former Republic of Srpska president Radovan Karadžić will restart on March 1, according to presiding Judge O-Gon Kwon. The decision for continuing the process was also an answer to the verbal demand of Karadžić, who is defending himself, to postpone the trial again, claiming that he has …

The EU mission in Kosovo, EULEX, today said that it “firmly believes that progress in the north of Kosovo can be made only by dialogue”. A statement from the mission’s press service further said that this could be achieved by involving all communities concerned, “and step by step”. The statement …