Albania

Vetro Energy, a US-based consortium, is the frontrunner in a tender to buy Albania’s state-owned oil company, Albpetrol, with an offer of €850 million.Albania’s Deputy Economy Minister, Sokol Dervishaj, said that Vetro Energy, which is bidding through the Vetro Silk Road Equity Ltd consortium out of Singapore, ranked first out …

Socialists accuse government of Sali Berisha of funneling millions of euro in advertising money to friendly media, close to the ruling centre-right Democratic Party.Albanian Socialist MP Eduard Shalsi has revealed data showing that in the past five years several government ministries have paid for expensive TV advertising campaigns, with the …

Bosnia’s NGOs have marked September 21, International Peace Day, with an event in Sarajevo called “Peace Starts with a Smile“.More than a 100 children, teenagers, activists and, representatives from a wide range of civil society organizations gathered in front of Sarajevo’s cathedral to symbolically mark International Peace Day by reading …

During his visit to Montenegro, Clint Williamson, head of the EULEX task force in charge of the Kosovo organ trafficking case, has called for regional cooperation in the investigation.Williamson met the Montenegrin interior minister, Ivan Brajovic, on Thursday. He presented the efforts of his team, which was formed in October …

The OSCE head in Albania, Eugen Wollfarth, has praised recent reforms in Albania, while expressing concerns that they might grind to a halt in 2013 during a ‘competitive’ election campaign.“In the last 12 months the political climate has improved as institutions made progress to regain their functionality,” Walfarth said in …

The Catholic Archdiocese of Shkodra on Tuesday said it will excommunicate anyone involved in traditional blood feuds, as concern grows about the revival of so-called honour killings.In a statement reflecting growing concern over the level of so-called blood feuds in Albania, the Catholic Church in Shkodra, said that, “Prompted by …

The Tirana prosecutor’s office is investigating a judge in Durres who is accused of abuse of power by freeing a murder suspect.According to the prosecutor, Judge Neritan Tabaku stalled the publication of the arguments on a previous murder case against a local gangster, Ilir Xhakja, for nearly 17 months, blocking …

Albania’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday played down the risks of trying to renegotiate a maritime border deal with Greece, which Albania’s Constitutional Court has deemed unlawful.“There are no reports or secret scripts regarding the issue of the maritime border between Greece and Albania,” the Secretary General of the Foreign Ministry, …

The Supreme Court on Monday disqualified as evidence a key video, which appeared to show former economy minister Dritan Prifti sharing a hefty bribe with his former deputy.Fatmir Braka, Prifit’s lawyer, said the judges had ruled the video inadmissible as proof on the defence’s request. “Because the video is inadmissible, …

Reversing his previous position, Socialist leader Edi Rama said his party will vote in favour of government plas to reform immunity laws – even though the government has refused to consider other reforms proposed by the opposition.Socialist leader Edi Rama said he will not stand in the way of reforms …