Attempts to re-energise long running peace talks between leaders of ethnically-divided Cyprus do not seem to have produced the firm results Ban Ki-moon was after, but at least there appears to be goodwill on both sides. Flanked by Greek Cypriot President Demetrius Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat, …
Read More »Serbia Minister: Srebrenica Resolution Is Test
Serbian Defence Minister Dragan Sutanovac said that voting on the resolution on the Srebrenica massacre will show who on the Serbian political scene behaves and thinks like a responsible person, and who remains in a past era that should be long behind the country. In an interview with the Tanjug …
Read More »KFOR cuts troop level
KFOR downsized from 14,000 to 10,000 troops effective, the peacekeeping force announced. KFOR — made up of troops from 32 countries — will continue to provide security and stability for all Kosovo communities. The downsizing is being implemented in accordance with a NATO decision from July 2009 amid improving security …
Read More »Georgia arrests Bosnian Serb wanted for war crimes
A Bosnian Serb wanted by Republika Srpska (RS) authorities for war crimes against civilians has been arrested in Georgia. BiH Justice Ministry official Jusuf Halilagic said that Sasa Lipovac, 40, is in custody pending extradition. The RS Supreme Court issued an arrest warrant for Lipovac in 2008 after he failed …
Read More »Albanian Foreign Minister Meta says Albania will define maritime borders with Greece
Albanian Foreign Minister Ilir Meta said that defining maritime borders with Greece is a priority for Albania. Last week, the Constitutional Court in Tirana decided that an agreement on the border delineation violates the constitution and must be renegotiated. The opposition Socialist Party (SP) asked the court to for the …
Read More »Romania promissed to open Radauti Prut-Lipcani border
A new border between Romania and Moldova will open no later than on February 12. At least this is what Romanian authorities promised. The announcement was made by prefect of Botosani, Cristian Roman. He met Sunday with County Council President Mihai Ţibuleac, with customs authorities and Border Police, but also …
Read More »Russia opposes Serbian NATO membership
Serbia’s decision to join NATO would have negative effects on its relations with Russia, Konstantin Kosachev said. “For us, such a decision would be inexplicable and would have a negative effect on relations between Russia and Serbia,” the Chairman of the Duma Committee on International Affairs said. “A possible decision …
Read More »IMF Executive Board Approves US$574 ECF/EFF Arrangements for Moldova
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) today approved three-year arrangements for the Republic of Moldova under the Extended Credit Facility and the Extended Fund Facility. With each facility providing an equal amount, the combined financial assistance will be equivalent to SDR 369.6 million (about US$574.4 million) to …
Read More »Launch of interim trade deal between Serbia and EU
The interim trade agreement between the European Union and Serbia officially comes into force on February 1st. The Chief of EU delegation in Serbia, Vincent Degert told the press in Belgrade that the economic significance of a full implementation of the Interim Agreement is that Serbia will be more attractive …
Read More »UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon supports Cyprus unity talks
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has arrived in Cyprus on a mission to re-energise peace talks between the island’s estranged Greek and Turkish communities. Their leaders have been engaged in 17 months of open-ended negotiations which have achieved some movement on the key issue of power-sharing under a federal model, but …
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