Balkan News

Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dacic will be the first member of Socialist Party of Serbia, SPS, to attend the traditional National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, DC. The press attache to the American Embassy in Belgrade, Brian Stimler, confirmed that a diplomatic A1 visa has been issued to Dacic.

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou came to Belgrade on Monday to voice his support for Serbia’s and the Western Balkans’ integration into the EU, citing 2014 as a possible target date. According to the Greek news agency ANA, Papandreou noted that his presence in Belgrade is a signal for an …

Macedonia must meet Greece half way on the name issue if a settlement for the long standing spat is to be found, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said. Athens has already made concessions by accepting a name that would include Macedonia with a geographic determinant, Papandreou said in an interview …

Former Croatian Prime Minister, Ivo Sanader, has been expelled from the country’s ruling conservative party, the Croatian Democratic Union, HDZ, a day after he criticised his successor and announced that he was returning to politics. “The presidency of the Croatian Democratic Union …has decided to expel Ivo Sanader from the …

Turkey’s foreign minister on Tuesday urged Bulgaria to refrain from statements that could hurt the relationship between the two countries, after Sofia threatened to block Ankara’s EU membership pending compensation for ethnic Bulgarians thrown out of Turkey nearly one hundred years ago. “Friendship between Bulgaria and Turkey is for the …

Bulgaria is threatening to block Turkey’s application to become member of the European Union unless it pays out billions of euros in compensation for displaced people, in a case dating back to the days of the Ottoman Empire. Bulgarian minister in charge of the Bulgarians abroad, Bozhidar Dimitrov, pressed the …

Police have arrested a man, Darko Jankovic, for suspected war crimes against civilians committed during the Bosnian conflict, war crimes prosecution office spokesman Bruno Vekaric announced on Sunday (January 3rd). Vekaric said Jankovic is wanted for the 1992 killings of 19 civilians near the town of Zvornik, as well as …

Minister of Local Government Administration Sadri Ferati said that most of the work in the decentralisation process has been completed, citing as evidence the participation of Serb community members in the recent municipal elections. Ferati added that progress has been achieved due to the Kosovo government’s commitment to collaborating with …

Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) will soon join the Schengen zone, former EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said. Solana stressed that regional co-operation and peace in the Balkans are critical to the region, and added that its prospects lie not in division but in European integration. He also …

Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hashim Thaci said Kosovo’s EU perspective is not at risk despite the fact that five EU countries including Spain, the current holder of EU presidency, have not recognized Kosovo’s independence. Thaci made the remarks after Spain took over the rotating EU presidency on January 1.