Balkans

Macedonia: no election deal after political leaders meeting

Thursday’s meeting of Macedonian political leaders ended without agreement. After starting late and convening for less than an hour, the leaders came out with no agreement whatsoever on how to end the political gridlock caused by the opposition parliament boycott and a dispute over the date for the forthcoming election.

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Serbia’s chief negotiator on Kosovo says the solution must preserve peace and stability

Belgrade Kosovo talks team head Borko Stefanović says the issue of north Kosovo has to be resolved in a manner which would preserve peace and stability. The north of the province is inhabited predominantly by Serbs who refuse the authority of the Kosovo Albanian government in Priština.

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Bosnia’s Federation Entity Names New Government, But Instability Will Govern

By Anes Alic After five months of back-and-forth negotiations following October 2010 general elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the new parliament and government have been named in the Bosniak and Croat-dominated Federation entity. There has been an inability to reach a consensus at the highest levels for the distribution of ministries and …

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Early elections in Macedonia most likely on June 12

Leaders of the four biggest parties in Macedonia’s government and opposition VMRO-DPMNE, the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), the Democratic Party for Integration (DSI) and the New Democracy on Tuesday are to meet at the office of President Gjorge Ivanov to clear discuss about the early elections. At the …

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Bosnian Croats say they will form National Assembly

Bosnia’s main Croatian parties say national assembly will be first response to formation of government in the Bosniak-Croat entity that they see as “illegal”. The Croatian Democratic Union, HDZ, and its sister party HDZ 1990 have launched an initiative for the formation of a Croat national assembly for municipalities and

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EU Envoy Miroslav Lajcak makes efforts for free elections in Albania

EU envoy Miroslav Lajcak will hold meetings with Albanian leaders on Wednesday in an effort to defuse tensions ahead of May 8 local elections. Lajcak is set to meet on Tuesday with Albania’s President Bamir Topi and Prime Minister Sali Berisha, as well as Socialist opposition leader Edi Rama. The …

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