Balkans

SERBIA Serbian President Boris Tadic and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao have agreed in Beijing to establish a strategic partnership between the two countries, Xinhua news agency reported Thursday. “To further promote bilateral relations […] the two sides have decided to establish a strategic partnership,” a statement issued by the …

KOSOVO The European Commission liaison office in Kosovo, ECLO, has contributed €5 million to Kosovo’s debt repayments to the World Bank, the ECLO website reports.  The debt was accumulated prior to June 10, 1999, and was assumed by the Kosovo government when it became a member of the World Bank …

BiH The first elements of a US Armed Forces’ contingent have started arriving in Bosnia and Herzegovina for NATO’s Joint Endeavor 2009 military exercise. “Joint Endeavor 2009 is a test for Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Republika Srpska Television opined on Friday. This is the first time this annual NATO exercise is …

SARAJEVO, BiH Agencija za državnu službu BiH imenovat će danas Lidiju Topić za direktora Direkcije za evropske integracije BiH (DEI), rekao je juče Nikola Špirić, predsjedavajući Vijeća ministara BiH. Objasnio je da na jučerašnjoj sjednici Vijeća ministara nije postignuta saglasnost o imenovanju direktora DEI, Uprave za indirektno oporezivanje BiH (UIO) …

PODGORICA, Montenegro Serbia’s initiative to open three consulates in Montenegro should be decided on in direct talks between the two countries’ leaderships. This is according to a Podgorica-based Vijesti daily report, which quoted Montenegrin Foreign Ministry officials. Vijesti wrote that the official Belgrade was informed of the stand of the …

ZAGREB, Croatia Milan Španović, accused on committing war crimes in 1991 in the Glina area, has been extradited to Croatia, media in that country say. According to this, he arrived in Croatia on a flight from Britain accompanied by British police and is now in the Sisak prison. In 1994, …

TIRANA, Albania Albanian PM Sali Berisha’s statement about the need to “integrate Albanians” is not tantamount to provoking Belgrade, said the Foreign Ministry in Tirana. “This is not a case of provoking Serbia. The cooperation of the republic of Albania and the republic of Kosovo is quite natural and has …

CROATIA I’ve been in prison for Croatia and took so many risks than all priests will ever do. Stjepan Mesic said that the conflict with the Catholic Church went too far and took a wrong direction, Nova TV reported. Why priests are bigger Croatians than I am? Mesic asked and …

BULGARIA President Georgi Purvanov conferred the Stara Planina, first class, on outgoing Finnish ambassador to Bulgaria Kauko Jämsén. He received the highest Bulgarian state honour for his extraordinary contribution to the development of Bulgarian-Finnish relations and trade. Trade between the two countries more than tripled over the past four years, …

BiH The judge indicates that the Radovan Karadzic case is “ready for trial”, though he declines to set a date for the trial to begin. Iain Bonomy said that the Radovan Karadzic case is “ready for trial” and that he will inform the Court President of this. However, a date …