Balkan News

Bosniak Leaders Ask Belgrade for Equal Rights

Mustafa Ceric, the head of the Islamic Community in Bosnia-Herzegovina, appealed Tuesday to Belgrade to take greater responsibility in ensuring that human rights are guaranteed for all citizens. At a central gathering in Novi Pazar he said human and religious rights of Muslims in Serbia are being violated and emphasised …

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Bahrain Recognises Kosovo’s Independence

Bahrain has become the 60th state to recognise Kovoso’s independence. “Considering the cultural and religious ties between the two nations and the respect to the will for independence of the people of Kosovo, Bahrain decides to recognise Kosovo’s independence,” read a statement from Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as reported …

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Macedonia Visa Liberalisation on the Cards

Macedonia is well on the way to being granted a full visa liberalisation for travel to the EU, local media said Wednesday citing an unnamed diplomatic source. The European Commission’s assessment of whether the countries in the Western Balkans have fulfilled the requirements for the abolition of the visa regime …

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Report: Nimetz To Visit Macedonia, Greece

The UN mediator in the Athens-Skopje name row, Matthew Nimetz will probably visit both countries by June-end in a renewed effort to find a solution to the on-going spat, Greek media say. Nimetz has not confirmed the reports. Wednesday’s edition of Greek daily “To Vima” says that Nimetz will only …

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Italy Wants to Abolish Visas for Serbs

Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Franco Frattini, says abolishing the EU visa regime for Serbian citizens is possible by the end of 2009. In an interview with the daily ‘Blic’ newspaper he said: “The time has come to do everything to bring down the borders that separate the Balkan countries …

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US Vice President Kicks Off Balkan Tour

US Vice President Joseph Biden landed at Sarajevo’s airport on Tuesday early morning, officially kicking off his three-day tour of the Balkans. Aboard the Vice President’s Boeing 757, code-named “Air Force 2,” Joe Biden landed shortly before 5:00 am local time, traveling directly from Greensborough, North Carolina, where he held …

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EU Moves to Pull Peacekeepers from Bosnia

EU foreign ministers discussed plans for the final closure of the EU’s peacekeeping mission, EUFOR, in Bosnia, citing a stable security situation in the country. At a regular monthly meeting in Brussels on Monday foreign ministers agreed to move ahead with plans for EUFOR’s transition to “a non-executive capacity-building and …

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HDZ performs strongly in Croatian elections

ZAGREB, Croatia The senior ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) and its coalition partners managed to win the most votes in 14 counties in Sunday’s (May 17th) local elections. Preliminary results from the State Electoral Commission suggest the leading opposition party, the Social Democratic Party (SDP), claimed victory in five counties, …

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