Balkans

Bosnian Serbs Shrug Off Socialist International Snub

The main Bosnian Serb party, the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats, SNSD, has sounded a defiant note following its exclusion from the Socialist International.The Executive Secretary of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats, Rajko Vasic, led by the Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik, said the party will not go into …

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Nikolic and Putin to Confer on Gas Pipeline

The two presidents are meeting in Russia to discuss the future of the South Stream pipeline, which will run through Serbia.For the second time since he was elected Serbian President, Tomislav Nikolic is paying a visit to Russia, where he will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi on September …

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Europeans to Observe Montenegrin Election

The parliamentary assembly of the Council of Europe, PACE, is to send an observers’ mission to Montenegro – thus being the second international body to announce that it is monitoring the elections along with the OSCE.A team of 11 PACE parliamentarians are to observe the general elections in Montenegro, scheduled …

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Macedonian Lustration Again Disputed Before Court

Macedonia’s new Lustration Law, aimed at rooting out former police collaborators, may encounter the fate as the previous one, as key provisions are again contested before the Constitutional Court.Macedonia’s Helsinki Committee for Human Rights and a retired lawyer, Stamen Filipov – in two separate motions filed to the court on …

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EU Censures Bosnia For Missing Reform Deadline

Two senior Brussels officials on Monday criticised Bosnia for not keeping to the first EU deadline laid out in the so-called Road Map, relating to the Sejdic-Finci case.The Commissioner for Enlargement, Stefan Fule, and the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjorn Jagland, on Monday said that Bosnia had …

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Bulgaria Abandons Bid to Join Eurozone

PM and Finance MInister say they no longer see the benefits of Bulgaria joining the troubled single currency, even the country now satisfies all the criteria.Bulgaria has decided to postpone indefinitely its long-held plans to adopt the euro, the Prime Minister Boyko Borisov and the Finance Minister Simeon Djankov, have …

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Kosovo to Extend EU Law Mission’s Mandate

The mandate of the EU’s rule of law mission, EULEX, will be extended before September 10, Kosovo Asssembly Speaker Jakup Krasniqi said.Kosovo’s parliament is to vote this the week on a resolution to prolong the mandate of EULEX, the speaker of parliament said in Pristina. President Atifete Jahjaga has already …

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Serbian Leader to Address UN This Month

Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic will be among the first speakers to address the UN General Assembly at the opening ceremony later in September.President Nikolic is flying to New York at the end of September to address the United Nations General Assembly. Vuk Jeremic, the former foreign minister and the new …

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Albania Waste Referendum Ruling Outrages Greens

Environmental activists are up in arms over the Electoral College’s decision to reject an appeal against a decision by the Central Electoral Commission, CEC, on a referendum on waste imports.The specialized court on electoral issues on Friday rejected an appeal from the Alliance Against Waste Imports, AKIP, which would have …

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Kosovo Gets Green Light to Sell Off PTK

Ministry of Economic Development can proceed with the privatization of the Post and Telecommunications company, after a court threw out a complaint from Monaco Telecom.Kosovo’s government has received a green light to proceed with the privatization of 75 per cent of the shares in the Post and Telecom company, PTK, …

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