Eurasia

Efforts by Moldova’s Communist Party to keep its leader, Vladimir Voronin, in a position of power suffered a setback on Wednesday when his protegee was rejected as presidential candidate in a parliamentary vote. Voronin, president since 2001, cannot seek a third term in office; but he has secured the position …

The original proposal by EU commissioner for enlargement, Olli Rehn, for the solving of the border dispute between Croatia and Slovenia, is bad for Slovenia, but that is the consequence of the poorer actions by Pahor’s government in relation to the previous government, a Slovenian member of parliament, Milan Zver, …

The defence team for former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic said Wednesday it will present evidence next week that Karadzic was promised by a top U.S. official he would not be prosecuted for war crimes. Peter Robinson, Karadzic’s legal adviser, said his team would file a motion at the International …

BRUSSELS, Belgium The EU Council of Ministers is satisfied with the results of the EU’s judicial and rule of law mission in Kosovo, the EULEX, local media reported on Monday (May 18th). Meeting in Brussels, the council welcomed the mission’s efforts to support Pristina authorities.

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia President Danilo Turk met with visiting Macedonian counterpart Gjorge Ivanov on Monday (May 18th) and assured him that Slovenia will continue to support Skopje’s bid to join the EU and NATO.

ANKARA, Turkey A court ruled on Monday (May 18th) that President Abdullah Gul should stand trial in a fraud case involving missing party funds, despite his immunity as a head of state. The alleged fraud case dates back to the late 1990s, when the Welfare Party, a predecessor of the …

NICOSIA, Cyprus The new government in the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus won a confidence vote in parliament Monday (May 18th), media reported. The government won support from 26 of the 50 lawmakers, while 23 voted “against”, allowing the National Unity Party’s (UBP) cabinet to formally assume office.

BRUSSELS, Belgium The EU reiterated on Monday (May 18th) that Albania must ensure free and fair parliamentary elections in June in line with international standards, to boost its chances to receive EU candidate status.

ZAGREB, Croatia The government’s anti-crisis measures are not sufficient to address the challenges of the global economic crisis, President Stipe Mesic told Zagreb-based business daily Poslovni Dnevnik on Monday (May 18th). He noted that most of the moves seem to be prolonged, delaying implementation until after the local elections. Mesic …

GENEVA Georgia and Russia resumed security talks yesterday after mediators and a UN report helped nudge Moscow’s negotiators back to the table, officials said. All sides agreed to meet again on July 1 for talks intended to head off any further conflict in an area seen by the West as …