Eurasia

KOSOVO EU representative in Kosovo Pieter Feith says he supports the establishment of full EULEX customs control across Kosovo. A statement from his cabinet on Friday in Priština said that this included the EU mission’s activities to establish control over customs points of Jarinje and Brnjak, in the north of …

KOSOVO Some 200 Serbs attended a dedication ceremony in Velika Hoča of a memorial honoring the kidnapped and murdered Serbs. The gathering on Friday, commemorating the Serb victims from the Kosovo municipality of Orahovac who perished or disappeared from 1998 until 2000, was attended by representatives of the International Committee …

SERBIA It is time to apply the Interim Trade Agreement of the EU with Serbia, Austrian Minister of Foreign Affairs Michael Spindelegger said. After Slovenia and Croatia reached a deal about a border dispute, Spindelegger said that this positive period should be used to finally make some progress regarding Serbia. …

RUSSIA Russian PM Vladimir Putin has given the clearest indication yet that he might run again for the Russian presidency. Putin did not commit himself, but hinted that he is thinking of coming back in 2012 when President Dmitry Medvedev’s current term expires. The two leaders would not compete, but …

TURKEY The International Monetary Fund’s goal of reaching agreement with Turkey for a possible loan to the country doesn’t have to be achieved at the lender’s annual meeting next month in Istanbul, an IMF spokesman said. “Both the Turkish authorities and the IMF would like to reach a conclusion regarding …

CROATIA The Swedish Presidency over the EU welcomed today the agreement between Ljubljana and Zagreb for unblocking of the Croatian pre-accession talks, emphasizing that the Croatian entrance is of interest of the entire Union.

BALKANS Although the United States is not focused on the Balkans as it was in the 1990s, the challenges in this region are still reviewed at a very high level in Washington, a prominent US political expert said. John Stilides, a political strategist of the Republican Party and chairman of …

CROATIA Slovenia is set to unblock Croatia’s EU accession talks, while Zagreb is set to withdraw the disputed documents that prejudice the border between the two states. The major breakthrough in the negotiations emerged Friday at a meeting of Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor and Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor …

KAVKAZ During a meeting on September 14, EU Foreign Ministers are expected to launch a debate on how to bring the bloc’s outreach to the South Caucasus up to date. The EU recognizes that the South Caucasus is gaining in importance in terms of regional stability, energy, and trade. All …

CYPRUS CYPRUS is the only European Union member-state which did not vote in favour of a UN resolution that recognised the right of return of all internally displaced persons and refugees and their descendants to their homes throughout Georgia, it emerged yesterday. Cyprus was among 78 countries which abstained from …