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Ballin: Macedonia deserves to start EU entry talks

The Netherlands will support visa liberalization and the start of Macedonia’s EU accession talks, Dutch Justice Minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin said on Monday. He made the remarks after the signing of a Memorandum of Intent for the Dutch MATRA Programme – project on strengthening the national penitentiary system in line …

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Bulgaria considers participating in EU police mission in Afghanistan

Bulgaria considers participating in the EU police mission in Afghanistan, announced Bulgarian Defense Minister Nikolay Mladenov. This is to say that Bulgaria will send one or more experts. Mladenov did not specify from which ministry the expert would be – Interior Ministry, Foreign Ministry or Defense Ministry. The type and …

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Serbia’s EU Candidacy Unrealistic for 2009

European Parliament rapporteur for Serbia Jelko Kacin said that it is unrealistic for Serbia to apply for EU candidacy by the year’s end. After talks late Sunday with Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic, Kacin said that candidacy for membership is a game unlike poker that has clear rules by which …

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Former Macedonian Minister Queries PM’s ‘Name’ Strategy

Macedonia’s Prime Minister has failed to present a platform for resolving the country’s burning row with Greece, leaving a space that is wide-open for speculation, the former Foreign Minister Ilinka Mitreva said in an interview for local media. Macedonia urgently needs a national platform regarding this issue, she said. This …

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Albania Opposition Protests Election Result

Tens of thousands of opposition supporters held a major rally on Friday evening in Tirana, seeking a partial recount of the ballots cast during the 28 June parliamentary elections. The rally, which was organised by the Socialists headed by Tirana’s mayor Edi Rama was also supported by smaller opposition parties …

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Romanian president, rival face run-off vote: polls

Romania’s incumbent president and his Social-Democrat rival will face a run-off after Sunday’s first round election, exit polls showed, as the country aims to recover from a political crisis and a deep recession. Centre-right President Traian Basescu and his main rival Mircea Geoana were the two top vote-getters in Sunday’s …

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