SKOPJE, Macedonia Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki and Greek counterpart Dora Bakoyannis failed to meet on the sidelines of an OSCE ministerial conference on the Greek island of Corfu, local media reported Sunday (June 28th).
Read More »Turkey plans to re-open Halki Seminary
ANKARA, Turkey Culture Minister Ertugrul Gunay says Turkey plans to re-open the Greek Orthodox Seminary on the island of Heybeliada — Halki in Greek — off Istanbul, nearly four decades after it was shut down. He said on Sunday (June 28th) “The seminary does not currently fit into our university …
Read More »Serbia’s Tadic urges calm over Vojvodina status
BELGRADE, Serbia President Boris Tadic called for calm Friday (June 26th) concerning a law on the special status of the Vojvodina region, which is predominately populated by ethnic Hungarians. The law was forwarded into parliamentary procedure by a pair of minority parties, the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians and League of …
Read More »Kosovo Serbs mark Vidovdan
PRISTINA, Kosovo Thousands of Serbs turned out on Sunday (June 28th) to celebrate the 620th anniversary of the Kosovo battle in which the Serb Army confronted the invading Ottoman Turks.
Read More »Pristina downplays border dispute with Serbia
PRISTINA, Kosovo The government played down on Sunday (June 28th) suggestions of a border dispute brewing between Kosovo and Serbia in eastern Kosovo. The reaction came after a series of claims about a Serbian gendarmerie unit patrolling inside the village of Karacevo, an area Kosovo says is part of its …
Read More »Bulgaria Defends Release of former Kosovo PM
Bulgaria has defended its decision to release former Kosovo prime minister Agim Ceku, wanted for alleged war crimes in Serbia. “I guarantee that Bulgarian justice institutions acted in accordance with the domestic and international laws,” Bulgaria’s deputy prosecutor, Galina Toneva, told media in reference to the release last week of …
Read More »Albania Poll Considered “Marked Progress”
In a joint statement issued on Monday, the international election observer missions for Sunday’s parliamentary poll concluded that Albania’s election process demonstrated “marked improvements” but did not yet meet international standards. The mission included more than 400 short-term and long-term election monitors from the OSCE, ODIHR, Council of Europe Parliamentary …
Read More »New crossing point in Cyprus
NICOSIA, Cyprus Cypriot President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat agreed Friday (June 26th) to open a new crossing point between the Greek and Turkish-run parts of the divided island. It will be located near the village of Limnitis (Yesilirmak in Turkish).
Read More »Ceku release irks Belgrade
BELGRADE, Serbia Serbian President Boris Tadic on Friday (June 26th) demanded an explanation from Bulgaria over the release of former Kosovar Prime Minister Agim Ceku who is wanted for war crimes in Serbia. Tadic said the way Bulgarian authorities handled the case “does not contribute to good relations”. Meanwhile, Foreign …
Read More »Turkey adamant on full EU membership
BRUSSELS. Belgium Turkey is determined to push ahead with legal and political reforms to meet conditions for joining the EU as a full member, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday (June 26th) after talks with EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn in Brussels.
Read More »