Balkan News

The outgoing NATO chief Jaap De Hoop Scheffer is not optimistic about a quick settlement to the name row between Skopje and Athens. “I must add, openly and frankly, that after a visit I paid to Skopje last week, my optimism has not grown, in listening to the authorities in …

Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski will meet French President Nicolas Sarkozy this Friday to lobby for Paris’s support for his country’s EU aspirations. At the meeting, originally set for Thursday, but delayed due to the Government’s plane malfunction, Gruevski is expected to reiterate that that Macedonia has completed its part …

Work of the Bosnian and Herzegovina state government, the Council of Ministers, has been suspended until further notice, due to the ongoing disputes over which ethnic group will nominate the country’s new top negotiator with the EU, media reported on Friday. “The Council of Ministers will not hold sessions until …

Slovene President Danilo Tuerk said on Thursday that Croatia has to “take Slovene amendments to Rehn`s arbitrage proposal seriously, because the European Union expansion commissioner has not proposed a final document to both countries which could not be altered”. – I would like Croatia to start listening to Slovene views. …

Slovene government has officially turned down the proposal of nationalist leader Zmago Jelincic to advocate the entry of Croatian regions Istria and Dalmatia to the European Union. The Slovene cabinet stated that these were “counties, not countries in question” and that the EU does not allow association of regions based …

Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor said on Thursday that the Slovenian government adopted amendments to EU’s enlargement commissioner Olli Rehn’s last proposal on solving the border dispute between Croatia and Slovenia through arbitration. – As expected, today we formulated and adopted amendments to commissioner Rehn’s proposal and we will send …

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia The European Commission (EC) has declined to comment on the agreement among Slovenian political leaders concerning EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn’s proposal for resolving the border dispute with Croatia.

PRISTINA, Kosovo Serbs in a northern Mitrovica neighbourhood started rebuilding five houses Wednesday (May 13th), closely monitored by EULEX officials. The situation seems to be calm, in contrast to periods over the past two weeks, when Serbs had protested repairs to homes owned by ethnic Albanians situated in the Serb …

BUCHAREST, Romania By a wide margin Wednesday (May 13th), parliament rejected the first no-confidence vote filed against Prime Minister Emil Boc’s cabinet, which its foes accused of implementing policies that only aggravate the economic crisis.

THE HAGUE, The Netherlands The UN war crimes tribunal rejected a request by former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic to drop the charges against him Wednesday (May 13th). Karadzic insists the tribunal is hindering the process and his defence preparations by constantly raiding the homes of his relatives.