April, 2009

• 22 April

  Kosovo 21 – Serbia 13 at the ICJ

  Twenty one states have sent their written declaration to the International Court of Justice, ICJ, favoring Kosovo’s independence, while thirteen remain in favor of Serbia. The ICJ announced that 35 states have sent their written declarations, (including Kosovo) on the topic of whether Kosovo’s declaration of independence announced in February …

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• 22 April

  Macedonia to Cut Spending Amid Crisis

  Macedonia is cutting expenses and introducing a set of fresh measures to help its economy caught in the world economic downturn, the government said Tuesday. The announcement came late yesterday, of a nine percent cut in the state budget previously set at 2.5 billion euros. In addition, predictions released in …

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• 22 April

  EU Funds to Support Serbia

  The mission of European Commission arrives in Belgrade today for talks with Serbian officials on a financial help package worth EUR 100 million. The financial support for the Serbian Budget will be provided for by the European Union’s Instrument for Pre-Accession assistance, or the so-called IPA funds. Serbian Government and …

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• 22 April

  Bosnia Gears Up for NATO Exercises

  A three-day planning conference started in the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo, on Tuesday, is preparing for NATO exercises which will be held in the country later this year. Alliance’s “Joint Endeavor 2009” military exercise will be held in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina in September later this year. This is not …

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• 22 April

  EULEX Chief Ensures Safe Passage to Kosovo

  Head of EULEX, Yves de Kermabon has said that EULEX is able to ensure the safe visit of Serb politicians to Kosovo. “The escort can be managed by Kosovo’s Police or in case we consider this not to be enough we can help”, said Kermabon in an interview for Serbia’s …

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• 22 April

  NATO’s Kosovo Campaign a “Just War”

  A former senior adviser to the British government has defended military intervention in Kosovo, ten years later, defining it as a “just war”. David Clark, who once served as European Advisor at the UK’s Foreign Office between 1997 and 2001, argued that the conflict in Kosovo was “a response to …

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• 22 April

  Albanian Mayor Suggests Bi-National Macedonia

  The provisions from the Ohrid Peace Accord are partial and need to be widened to provide greater rights to the ethnic Albanians, says Rufi Osmani, a controversial local ethnic Albanian leader. In an interview for the local Dnevnik daily this charismatic figure, who was re-elected as mayor of the western …

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• 22 April

  Albania: Greek Mayor Sentenced to Prison

  A court in the city of Vlora Albania, sentenced on Tuesday, to a six-month prison term and a 500,000 Lek (€3,800) fine, an ethnic-Greek mayor who was indicted for ordering the dismantlement of road signs because they were not bilingual, causing subsequent traffic chaos and damage to public property. Mayor …

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• 22 April

  Serbian Political Party Financing Not Transparent

  Anti-corruption experts urge for changes to party financing laws and advocate for stricter auditing. Verica Barac, President of the Council for the Fight Against Corruption told Blic Daily that there is a reason political parties in power are “desperately defending public funds, public purchases and public enterprises”. They are not …

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• 22 April

  End to EU Visa Regime for Serbs Possible in 2009

  Visa restrictions for Serbs traveling throughout the EU are expected to be abolished by the end of the year, says Foreign Affairs Minister Vuk Jeremic, after his meeting with EU officials Javier Solana and Oli Rehn. Jeremic also announced that he expects the EU to make decision on financial help …

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