Eurasia

04 November 2008 Presevo – Milan Markovic, the chairman of the Coordination Body for Southern Serbia, has called on ethnic Albanian leaders to re-enter reconciliation talks after claiming a key condition had been met.

04 November 2008 Pristina – Kosovo’s first independently-compiled budget for 2009 will be €1.43 billion, an increase of 15 percent on 2008.

04 November 2008 Pristina – Former UN envoy for Kosovo’s final status and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Martti Ahtisaari, stands by his decision in backing Kosovo’s independence, in his new autobiography.

04 November 2008 Belgrade – Three Serbian nationalist parties including that of former Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica say they are ready to create a new alliance to challenge the current coalition government.

ISLAMABAD – A suicide bomber killed a Pakistani soldier and wounded nine Tuesday, highlighting the growing militant threat a day after the top U.S. commander in the region held security talks with Pakistani leaders.

Belgrade – Serbia will offer incentives to foreign investors including low taxes and subsidies, with an aim of boosting the economy, Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic said Monday.

Sofia – Three Bulgarian political parties, the LIDER Party, the nationalist VMRO, and the Agrarian People’s Union, have united to form a new centre-right coalition called “Napred” (“Forward”).

Tirana – Albanian President Bamir Topi rejected the option of Kosovo’s partition along ethnic lines, in a joint press conference with his Kosovo counterpart on Monday in Tirana.

Pristina – Kosovo’s President Fatmir Sejdiu has left for Albania in his first trip as a head of state to the country.

Podgorica – Neither Montenegro nor Serbia should close the door on their European future because of Kosovo, Svetozar Marovic, Montenegro’s ruling party vice-president says.