Convicted war criminals in the Hague could serve their sentences out in Slovenia. Hague Tribunal President Patrick Robinson opened the subject for discussion with Slovenian President Danilo Tuerk in Ljubljana. They met to finalise plans for phasing out the court’s work and close all cases by the end of 2013. …

Albania has made huge progress despite missing targets to qualify EU visa-free status by the end of the year, according to the country’s foreign minister. “The commission has recognized that Albania is progressing at full speed toward the government’s major goal, lifting visa restrictions within 12 months,” said foreign minister …

Qualifying countries in the Western Balkans could have visa-free status across the EU by the end of the year. The EU Council of Ministers meeting in Luxembourg have green-lighted the European Commission’s scheme of removing visa restrictions for countries in the Western Balkans who meet their criteria.