Croatia’s new president, Ivo Josipovic, said on Friday (February 19th) that any possible referendum on the independence of Bosnian Serbs would not affect the current structure of neighbouring BiH. Republika Srprka (RS) cannot change the current situation unilaterally, Josipovic said, adding that even if Bosnian Serbs hold a referendum, it …

Romanian Economy Minister Adrian Videanu announced on Friday (February 19th) that Russian gas giant Gazprom has officially invited Romania to join the South Stream gas pipeline project. “We will analyse this initiative with interest,” Videanu said, adding that Romania is open to any initiative that would contribute to the energy …

The UN war crimes tribunal on Friday (February 19th) rejected a request by Serb Radical Party (SRS) leader Vojislav Seselj to drop all charges against him and terminate war crimes proceedings, due to the alleged violation of his rights as a defendant. Seselj based his request on the “doctrine of …

The IMF announced it would give Romania $3.32 billion as part of a big loan to help the country recover from its deep recession. The IMF, the World Bank and the EU drafted a $27.2 billion aid package last May. The latest tranche, which will be disbursed “immediately”, will bring …

The European Union cannot request Serbia to recognize Kosovo, says an Austrian MEP. This is because the unilateral declaration of independence of Serbia’s southern province had not been recognized by some EU member-states, European parliament member and Vice-President of the Socialist group in the EP Hannes Svoboda has stated.

A delegation of U.S. senators, including George Voinovich [R-OH] and Jeanne Shaheen [D-NH], visited Belgrade on Thursday. They met with President Boris Tadić, and called for a partnership between Serbia and the U.S.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, has welcomed Serbia’s EU membership application and stressed that cooperation with the UN war crimes court, ICTY, is central to Serbia’s further progress toward the EU. Speaking about Serbia’s EU integration at a press conference in Belgrade on Thursday, Ashton said that …

The International Court of Justice, ICJ, has set a deadline of December 20, 2010, for Croatia to submit its response to Serbia’s genocide countersuit. At the same time, the ICJ set a deadline of November 2011 for Serbia to reply to Croatia’s response.

Kosovo opened its embassy in the Croatian capital Zagreb on Friday, only two days after celebrating the second anniversary of its disputed declaration of independence from Serbia. “Croatia is very important to us, it provides a good model for us in terms of what we need to do to achieve …

Public administration officials have compiled answers to seven of the 35 chapters in the European Commission (EC) questionnaire, which is crucial to receiving EU candidate status. Answers on the free movement of workers, public procurement, fisheries, transport policies, economic and monetary policies, policies of trans-European transportation and customs were delivered …