Balkans

Bosnia is divided, says Dodik

Bosnia is a country “irreversibly divided” along ethnic lines, Bosnian Serb President Milorad Dodik told a Serbian paper on Monday, 15 years after a peace deal ended the country’s inter-ethnic war in the 1990s. “Bosnia is divided in an irreversible way” and “they (the international community) will

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Turkish PM: No deal unless EU acts on trade with Turkish Cyprus

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that Turkey is ready to open its ports to Greek Cypriot vessels and aircraft if the European Union takes steps to end the economic isolation of Turkish Cyprus. Erdoğan, speaking to reporters on Monday, said Turkey would not change its position on Cyprus …

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US calls for progress in BiH on Dayton anniversary

Marking the 15th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Agreements on Sunday (November 21st), US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on Bosnian leaders to address remaining constitutional and other issues that are essential to progress. She described the accord that ended the 1992-1995 conflict as a cornerstone of peace and …

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Macedonia meets NATO accession criteria but still has to solve name issue

Macedonia is ready and the doors for its NATO accession are open but the membership will be a fact after the name dispute with Greece is solved. This is the conclusion drawn at the NATO summit in Lisbon about Macedonia. Macedonia President Gjorge Ivanov, who attended the forum in Lisbon, …

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European Commissioner Stefan Fule to visit Belgrade

European Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Fule is to arrive on a visit to Serbia on Tuesday. Fule is expected to hand the European Commission’s ‘questionnaire’ to Serbian authorities. Serbia’s answers to the questions will determine its readiness for the EU accession. Fule’s cabinet said that the document consists of around …

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Turkey rejects EU’s Cyprus offer to open talks on new chapters

Despite mounting pressure from the European Union to open its ports and airports to the Greek half of Cyprus, Turkey will not be doing so until a settlement on the divided island is reached, a senior state official has said, the online edition of Turkish Zaman daily writes. Turkey strongly …

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NATO encourages Western Balkans’ Euro-Atlantic integration

Democratic values, regional co-operation and good neighbourly relations are important for lasting peace and stability in the Western Balkans, NATO members said in a joint declaration in the end of their two-day summit in Lisbon on Saturday (November 20th). “We continue to actively support Euro-Atlantic aspirations in this region,” the …

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