Eurasia

Medvedev said neither Russia nor the United States can tolerate `drift and indifference` in their relationship. Russia and the United States should rebuild their relations and work together on key global issues, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said in an article on Tuesday in the Washington Post. Medvedev said neither Russia …

ATHENS, Greece – Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis has rejected an initiative by Macedonian counterpart Antonio Milososki aimed at improving strained relations between the two neighbours, media reported on Monday (March 30th). In a letter to Bakoyannis on March 13th, Milososki suggested that the two countries should overcome their differences by …

MADRID, Spain – A Spanish court has released on bail Remzi Kartal, a former lawmaker from Turkey’s disbanded Democracy Party and suspected former commander of the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Turkish media reported on Monday (March 30th).

LONDON, the United Kingdom – The international human rights watchdog Amnesty International accused Greek police of using excessive force and violating the rights of demonstrators in a report released on Monday (March 30th).

The European Commission as rejected a request by Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev to send European officials and diplomats to help the country’s state administration in its handling of EU funds. In a letter, obtained by the Dnevnik newspaper, European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso told Stanishev that the new …

Bulgaria’s Criminal Assets Forfeiture Commission on Tuesday imposed a ban on funds and property worth 828,000 leva (423,500 euro) owned by Alexander Tomov, a former deputy prime minister and now president of CSKA Sofia football club and executive director of Kremikovtzi steel plant. Tomov is under investigation for embezzlement while …

As the World Bank issues its latest report which forecasts the first global recession since World War II, the chill winds of economic slowdown are increasingly being felt in the Balkans. The current unprecedented economic downturn has forced the World Bank to adjust its estimates and warn that the recession …

The member states and institutions of the European Union are keeping a close eye on the rich energy potential of the Balkan countries, Western officials have said, urging local leaders to undertake necessary reforms and unlock this sector for potential investments. This message was delivered by several senior EU officials …

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia – Slovenian President Danilo Turk and Parliament Speaker Pavel Gantar signed on Friday (March 27th) the protocol for Croatia’s NATO accession, thus allowing the country to join the alliance at its April summit. Slovenia was the last of the 26 NATO members to ratify the protocol. The move …

ANKARA, Turkey – Six people, including opposition Great Union Party (BBP) leader Muhsin Yazicioglu, died in a helicopter crash in the southern province of Kahramanmaras, Interior Minister Besir Atalay said on Friday (March 27th). Yazicioglu’s helicopter crashed Wednesday in bad weather. Searchers took two days to find the wreckage and …