Balkans

Serbian right groups have condemned a recent statement of the Serbian president that the massacre in Srebrenica, while a horrible crime, was not genocide.Seven Belgrade based human rights organisations issued a joint statement saying that President Tomislav Nikolic’s claims that the crimes committed in Srebrenica were not genocide offended the …

The US Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs, Michael Hammer, on Friday urged Macedonia and Greece to step up activities leading to a solution to the long-standing ‘name’ dispute.”The United States would like to see the issue resolved so that Macedonia joins NATO as soon as possible. Again, we …

About ten thousand Croatian teachers, university professors and nurses demonstrated on Thursday in Zagreb against austerity measures and cuts in wages and healthcare.”You betrayed us” and “You protect the wealthy” were among the angry slogans held up at the protest in Zagreb organised by the union of public service workers. …

Serbia’s ruling Progressive Party says it will intensify the fight against corruption even if it leads to the fall of the coalition government and a new election.Nebojsa Stefanovic, speaker of parliament and deputy president of the ruling Progressives, said his party would risk a new general election if it felt …

Kosovo and Serbia working groups, dealing with implementation of the Integrated Border Management deal, on Thursday agreed in Brussels to put what they had agreed into action.Kosovo and Serbia vowed to honour a deal reached earlier on Integrated Border Management under the auspices of the EU-facilitated dialogue and agreed to …

Bosnia made scant progress on its EU path as its politicians have little interest in furthering the rule of law or transparency, analysts say, after Brussels delivered its critical report.Laws on the Census and on State Aid were the only significant legislative moves that Bosnia made over the last year …

A new bill presented on Wednesday to mark Albania’s 100 years of independence will grant an amnesty to prisoners serving sentences of less than two years.The bill, which is expected to be voted on soon in parliament, will release all prisoners serving less than two years in jail.

After being shunned for two years in a row, Albania expects to obtain EU candidate status on Wednesday, though such a recommendation will likely come with a host of conditions.The European Commission is expected this week to recommend granting EU candidate status to Albania, “considering the improvement in the political …

Bulgaria and Romania are still exchanging accusations ahead of the planned opening of a new Danube bridge.Romanian and Bulgarian officials are still trading complaints ahead of the expected opening of a long-awaited bridge connecting the two countries.

The European sovereign debt crisis came back with full force on Tuesday, riots and Nazi uniforms included. German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras in Athens, sparking substantial protests and violent clashes with the police. Hours before, the International Monetary Fund had released a report in which …