Balkans

Official negotiations between Serbia and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) began today in Belgrade. The talks concern the EUR 2.9bn loan and the country’s budget for 2010. These are the first meetings concerning the second and third revision of the loan arrangement, and see participation from IMF delegation members and …

FM Vuk Jeremić says that after the visit of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev Serbia is “stronger economically, politically and regionally”. “The unconditional support from Russia makes Serbia stronger than other countries in the region,” the foreign minister said on Sunday.

Montenegro and Croatia will submit documentation to the International Court of Justice regarding their outstanding border dispute. The border in issue is related to on the small peninsula of Prevlaka near Herceg Novi in Montenegro. Croatian ambassador to Montenegro Petar Turčinović said that the documents of the two countries will …

Former President of the Republic of Srpska Biljana Plavšić will be released from Hilsenberg prison as planned, Swedish authorities confirmed. “Biljana Plavšić will be released today,” Swedish Ministry of Justice spokeswoman Janet Matsson said on Monday.

Kosovo’s Foreign Minister Zenun Pajaziti said he expected no problems whatsoever in the process of demarcation of the border toward Montenegro. “Kosovo has its borders. We will manage this process jointly and I expect no problems whatsoever,” Pajaziti said. Pajaziti said that he had no information as to when will …

On Tuesday the European Commission (EC) would approve allotment of EUR 300 mln in compensation for shutdown units of Kozloduy NPP. The Bulgarian National Television has learned the proposal on the compensation deposed by the President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso has not raised contradictions among EU Commissioners. …

Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic boycotted the war crimes trial against him at a UN court in The Hague on Monday, Dutch media said.The trial started at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) shortly after 9:00 a.m. (8:00 GMT) with Karadzic’s absence. The presiding judge O-Gon …

Three Albanian political groups in southern Serbia have joined to form a united political party. The party, dubbed the Democratic Union of Albanians, DUA, was formed when a Bujanovac party with the same name, led by Mejdi Zeqiri, merged with Ramiz Zulfiu’s Citizens’ Group, from the town of Presevo, and …

Foreign Affairs Minister Ilir Meta, declared on Monday that Albania would move to strengthen its ties with Serbia, describing the country as an important partner for regional stability in the Balkans. “The strengthening of our relationship with Serbia is an important priority for our regional policy,” said Meta, speaking during …

Even after its apparent failure, an EU and US initiative to end Bosnia’s political impasse is still fostering confusion and tensions among local and international leaders as they search for a way out of the crisis. With senior EU officials scheduled to meet in Luxembourg to discuss the situation in …