RSSREGIONS: COUNTRIES:
In Balkans, U.S. Could Use 1800s Supreme Court Case for Guidance
By Ralph R. Johnson
Vice President Biden is on a diplomatic tour in the Balkans, visiting what many regard as the most problematic areas in the region. In his visit to Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Kosovo, he has the opportunity to foster improved relations among parties whose cooperation needs additional encouragement, and few are as well-suited as he to do just that: In Bosnia-Herzegovina, in particular, the vice president has significant experience and meaningful relationships.
Thousands attend Patriarch Pavle's funeral
Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Pavle was buried in the churchyard of the Rakovica monastery in Belgrade on Thursday. More than 600,000 faithful followers, state and church officials attended the service.
US Supports BiH, Montenegro for NATO MAP
The US-Adriatic Charter ministers agreed to sign a joint statement on enhancing co-operation through regional centres in the Western Balkans.
Former Bulgarian cabinet ministers face criminal charges
Former Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev is being investigated in connection with leaked classified information, while a member of his cabinet is probed for criminal breach of trust and another has already been indicted on charges of abuse of power.
Business: World Bank approves loan for Serbia
Serbia will receive a state budget loan from the World Bank. Also in business news: Albania awards concession contracts for eight power plants, and a 400/110 kilowatt power substation opens in Istog, Kosovo.
Van Rompuy becomes first EU president, Turkey worried
BRUSSELS, Belgium -- EU leaders agreed on Thursday (November 19th) to appoint Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy as the first permanent Europea...
Kosovo's PDK denies coalition rift
PRISTINA, Kosovo – The coalition government, composed of the two biggest parties--President Fatmir Sejdiu's Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) an...
Romanian court green-lights unicameral parliament referendum
BUCHAREST, Romania -- The Bucharest Court of Appeals on Thursday (November 19th) turned down a request from NGOs to suspend a referendum called by Pr...
BiH fails to meet conditions for closing OHR
SARAJEVO, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) -- Political directors of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) Steering Board did not discuss transitioning...
Report: Macedonia's Buckovski wins court appeal
SKOPJE, Macedonia -- Local media reported on Thursday (November 19th) that the Appeals Court has overturned a verdict against former Prime Minister V...
Croatian parliament approves Popijac as economy minister
ZAGREB, Croatia -- Parliament approved Djuro Popijac as the country's new economy minister on Thursday (November 19th). He replaces Damir Polancec, w...
Croatia ratifies arbitration border agreement with Slovenia
ZAGREB, Croatia -- Parliament ratified the arbitration border agreement Friday (November 20th) aimed at resolving the long-standing border dispute wi...
British lawyer to represent Karadzic at Hague
THE HAGUE, The Netherlands -- The UN war crimes tribunal appointed a London lawyer, Richard Harvey, to represent former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan K...
Albanian parties argue ahead of opposition protest
TIRANA, Albania -- The two main political parties exchanged accusations on Thursday (November 19th), ahead of a protest in Tirana organised by the So...
Health minister says Albania is close to swine flu epidemic
TIRANA, Albania -- Health Minister Petrit Vasili said on Thursday (November 19th) that Albania is a step away from declaring a swine flu epidemic. Va...
Kosovo Serb sentenced for inciting hatred
PRISTINA, Kosovo -- A panel led by EULEX judges at the District Court of Mitrovica North sentenced a Kosovo Serb to more than to six years in prison...
SETimes news - English
News and Views of Southeastern Europe
GdF, Dalkia eye privatisation of Sofia steam heating utiulity
France's utility operators Gaz de France and Dalkia are interested in the forthcoming privatisation of Sofia's steam heating company "Toplofikatsiya", minister of industry Traicho Traikov said Tuesday.
Judges urge magistrate council to sack members suspected of corruption
The Union of Judges in Bulgaria on Tuesday issued a statement demanding the Supreme Judicial Council to expell three of its members, which have been implicated in corruption.
Bulgaria asks France to help it build second nuclear plant, backtracks on warships purchase
Bulgaria's new prime minister Boiko Borisov on Monday asked France to help his country build and finance a second nuclear power plant and scrapped a deal to purchase French warships worth EUR750 million that his predecessor had agreed in principle.
Bulgarian official blasts Libya in UNESCO dispute
Bulgaria's former foreigm minister Ivailo Kalfin on Moday berated Libya for its threat to leava the UN organisation on cultural heritage UNESCO if its newly elected chief, Bulgarian Irina Bokova takes office.
Libyan attacks Italian army barracks, loses hand
A Libyan immigrant threw a bomb at Italian army barracks in Milan on Monday and had his hand torn off in the blast.
US scholars share economics Nobel prize
U.S. economists Elinor Ostrom and Oliver Williamson won the Nobel prize for economics Monday by their analyses of management of common property and role of economy in conflict resolution.
Bulgaria's economy to contract by 2% in 2010 - Fin Min
Bulgaria's economy will contract by 2% next year compared to a 6.3% contraction this year, finance minister Simeon Djankov said as quoted by the media on Monday.
Support for Bulgaria's new government rises - pollster
Support for Bulgaria's new centre-right prime minister Boiko Borisov has risen by 3.7% on the month to 50% September, Gallup reported Monday.
Blast kills 41 people in Pakistan
A blast caused by a suspected suicide bomber killed up to 41 people in Pakistan's tense Swat valley, the army said.
Armenia's leader to pay a landmark visit to Turkey
Armenia's president Serzh Sarkisyan said Monday he would pay a landmark visit to Turkey on Wednesday.
Bulgaria, Romania mull joint Danube hydroelectric projects - official
Balkan neighbours Bulgaria and Romania are considering construction of two hydroelectric plants on the Danube River, which makes their common border, a Romanian official was quoted as saying Sunday.
Bulgaria's PM to meet Sarkozy
Bulgaria's prime minister Boiko Borisov will discuss economic and military co-operation with French presidend Nicolas Sarkozy in Paris on Monday.
Bulgarian News Network
The latest bulgarian news online in English. Business, finance, politics and sports. A quick, accurate and dispassionate report of everything that matters. The shortest cut to the heart of the Balkans.
Kosovo precedent: Barroso dismisses Saakashvili calls it an excuse
Kosovorsquo;s independence was called as a special case by the Western powers while Russia had warned it as a dangerous ldquo;precedentrdquo; earlier this year but European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso on Tuesday October 14 dismissed Moscowrsquo;s ldquo;Kosovordquo; comparison with the ldquo;South Ossetia and Abkazia rdquo; as baseless.
Addressing a joint...
The McCain Clinton or Obama Balkan Line?
Which presidential hopeful will best lead the US into a new era will not necessarily be the best for its foreign policy in the Balkans. The US has maintained hegemonic policy in the Balkans throughout the 1990s fueling turmoil and just recently supported another break-up in the region - Kosovos...
Drug road troubling for EU road
With most Western Balkan states heading towards EU membership its worrying that a well-known drug trafficking route running through the heart of the region is a driving factor of Europes black economy and is adapting to new economic demands. The traditional Balkan Route used by organised criminals to import drugs...
A new state - is spirit enough?
The initial thrill that Kosovo Albanians expressed last week after their long-awaited declaration of independence may soon die down as the real challenges of state-building surface. There is no turning back. They are now faced with working alongside the EU to transform their dilapidated contentious state into a self-governing internationally-respected...
A response to The Balkan Line: Bosnias status quo finale
I have read your article entitled Bosnias status quo finale November 18th by Elisabeth Maragoula and would like to take this opportunity to clarify the position of the government of Republika Srpska RS on the issues that have been mentioned in the article. The RS government is not against streamlining...
Bosnias status quo finale
Anticipating tomorrows political arena in the Balkans is nearly impossible; but one thing is for certain: Bosnias political status quo is not functional. The country is facing its worst political crisis in the last 12 years which is fuelling an economic downturn and heightened ethnic tensions. The Dayton Accords ended...
Kosovo elections face major hurdles
Insecurity over their future status intensifying ethnic loyalties a flawed arena for elections and below par social and economic conditions are several of the difficulties Kosovo citizens are facing as they mull voting on November 17 in the provinces third parliamentary elections alongside municipal elections.Debate over Kosovos status - in...
Serb authorities slammed: Neo-Nazis hit the streets despite ban
In the wake of the nationalist struggle for Kosovo the recent failure of the Serb government and police to prevent neo-Nazis from causing a ruckus in the multicultural city of Novi Sad is a serious problem as things may soon heat up among even-more threatening groups. The Vojvodina-based neo-Nazi group...
Wakeup call on cluster bombs from Serbia
More than eight years after NATO pounded Serbia and Montenegro with cluster bombs in the Kosovo war the organisation last month finally released its target data including 218 sets of coordinates so groups like the Serbian Centre for Demining can get down to work to save more lives from being...
EU travel a tough road for Balkan citizens
Travel through Europe is slated to get easier and cheaper for Balkan citizens but much more is needed. When Milosevic was in power the lines in front of the embassies were explained by the political circumstances in the former Yugoslavia. Today is 2007; Milosevic is not in power anymore and...
No happy ending in sight for Kosovo
Calls by international envoys last week for ldquo;fresh ideasrdquo; and ldquo;realistic proposalsrdquo; for Kosovorsquo;s future status may be too late. The diametrically-opposed Belgrade and Pristina delegations made no progress meeting separately with troika envoys US EU and Russia on September 18 and 19 in bridging the gap between their respective...
Distrust mounting over Kosovo question
Last weekrsquo;s headlines of a shootout at a jewellery store outside Pristina and a fatal clash with police in neighbouring FYROM former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia near the Kosovo border are examples of regional insecurity. Distrust is mounting as impatience builds over the question of Kosovorsquo;s future - status quo...
Europes test on Kosovo: Unity first diplomacy second
The Kosovo issue may just make or break the European Union. With more than 1.6 billion Euro in EU funds poured into Serbias southernmost province since 1999 Kosovo still has rampant crime higher than 40 percent unemployment and no tangible state status. While the current status quo is unsustainable a...
Serbias Last Hand: The Battle for Kosovo Rages
In a last-minute bid to push Belgrade and Pristina to agree on a final status for Kosovo troika envoys met in Vienna separately with the two delegations on August 30 in what looked like more dead-end talks. This fresh 120-day round of jawboning diplomacy comes following Russias threat to veto...
The Balkan Line - New Europe News
The Balkan Line - New Europe News: The European News Source.
Keep an Eye on the Balkans
Trouble is brewing.
Macedonia Ready to Start EU Membership Talks
German Foreign Policy
While the Obama administration is distracted by the overwhelming economic crisis that deepens day by day, Germany is taking charge in the global foreign-policy arena.
The Tragedy of Kosovo
One year on from the declaration of Kosovo’s independence, the former Serbian stronghold remains destabilized, wracked with crime and corruption.
European Union Deploys Its Largest Police Mission Ever
What does it mean when the EU sends its largest police mission ever to Kosovo?
The Next Balkans Crisis
Is the world sleepwalking into another Balkans crisis?
EU Steps Up Mission in Kosovo
The true conqueror of the Balkans takes control now that NATO and the U.S. have finished the dirty work.
Georgia and the Balkans of Eurasia
Suddenly the Transcaucasus leaps into perspective in the emerging global order.
Karadzic and Islam's Northward Push
A coming clash of civilizations may be accelerated by the outcome of the forthcoming trial of Radovan Karadzic.
Karadzic and the Anti-Serbs
A pervasive anti-Serb bias guarantees that the trial of Radovan Karadzic will be at least as unjust as was the sham trial of Slobodan Milosevic.
Germany: Second-Largest Single Donor in Kosovo
Germany continues to follow its blueprint for control of the Balkans.
Pro-EU Government Takes Power in Serbia
The European Union is one step closer to cementing its influence over the Balkans.
Cracks Appear in the EU Facade
Does the present EU crisis herald a change in the unification process? Will Europe’s emerging disorder develop into a situation that will eventually require the use of military force to fulfill the EU vision?
The Vatican Purposes to Evangelize Kosovo
The Roman Catholic bishop of Kosovo believes that Kosovo’s Muslims need a “cultural baptism” into Catholicism. How is the Vatican influencing events in the Balkans?
Bosnia: Terrorist Attacks Thwarted
Recent arrests in Bosnia remind us that Islamic terrorism has taken root in the underbelly of Europe.
Russia's Balkans
What is at stake at the coming NATO summit? Why is it “an issue of survival” for Moscow? Why does Russia want to keep Ukraine and Georgia out of the alliance?
Adding Injury to Insult
NATO and Europe are pouring troops and police into Kosovo to put down Serbs who are actually angry their country has been torn apart.
Kosovo--Last of the Balkan Dominoes
What Germany started in the Balkans in the early 1990s, it is now preparing to finish.
Russia Encourages Serbs in Kosovo and Bosnia to Secede
Moscow supports Bosnian and Kosovo Serbs uniting with their motherland. Europe is trying to further divide them. What does the future hold for the Balkans?
Kosovo Declares Independence
How will the international community respond to Kosovo’s newly declared independence?
Black Sea--New EU Frontier?
In less than two decades the European Union has pushed its eastern frontier from Berlin to the Black Sea. How much more will Russia tolerate—and what of Iran, beginning to feel the EU breathing down its neck?
Pope Meets Kosovo Leader
The Vatican meddling in Balkan affairs should be sounding off historically terrifying echoes.
Russia Pursues Serbia's Largest Energy Company
Moscow’s efforts to secure influence over Serbia’s energy systems will perturb the European Union.
German Fascism Is Conquering Kosovo!
What is happening in Kosovo reaches far beyond the Balkans. It is so shocking that the nations of this world would be paralyzed with fear if they truly understood! Shamefully, America is its chief architect.
EU Agrees to Beef Up Presence in Kosovo
The European Union is emerging as the driving force behind Kosovo’s independence.
theTrumpet.com: Balkans
theTrumpet.com -- Understand your world.
BULGARIA: Bulgaria Gets Back Frozen Aid Under PHARE
The European Commission has unblocked part of hundreds of millions of euros in EU funding for Bulgaria under PHARE program, which were suspended last year for the country's failure to adequately tackle corruption. This emerges from a letter from the European Commission Enlargement Directorate to Bulgaria's Finance Minister Simeon Djankov. Bulgaria has been allowed to fund, through its own budget for the time being, projects under PHARE pre-accession program, concluded by July 2008, when the European Commission barred two agencies from handling PHARE money.
ROMANIA: Bucharest Paralyzed by Subway Strike
Caught in the heat of the campaign, the politicians are blaming the Metrorex trade unions’ side scene games. Nightmarish traffic in a city in which traffic is arduous on a regular day as it is. Bucharest has been choked on a day in which 650 000 subway passengers were forced to choose other means of transportation. The term bumper to bumper was more appropriate than ever. Meanwhile, the politicians are blaming each other and interim Transport Minister Radu Berceanu is considering settling the protest in court. In fact there is a precedent for that, with the protest being ruled illegal after two days of strike back in 2005. According to Mediafax, Berceanu stated that the law provisions that the transport employees have to conduct one third of their regular activity during a general labor strike, while the subway trade unions decided both now and in 2005 to establish the protest’s schedule on their own so that the subway would be entirely inactive at rush hours. ‘They lost in 2005 and we could resort to the courts especially since there is a precedent; however I don’t want to adopt a position of force and resort to the justice system,’ Berceanu said. He also stated that he proposed the subway employees to wait for another month and a half or two at most until the national budget, the Transport Ministry’s budget and Metrorex’s budget are adopted in order to have all the data at hand so as to be able to talk about salary hikes. Berceanu also announced that negotiations on Metrorex employees’ salary hikes cannot take place before January. The interim Transport Minister underlined that if the 20 per cent salary hike that the subway trade unions asked for were to be offered that would mean a 48 per cent hike compared to the 2008 salaries, with the subway employees’ average gross income standing at RON 3 600.
TURKEY: Boost in Competitiveness Requires Micro Reforms, not Monetary Policy’
State Minister Zafer Çağlayan and Central Bank Governor Durmuş Yılmaz both spoke on Turkey’s international competitiveness at a conference held in İstanbul yesterday. Any strengthening of Turkey’s standing in terms of international competition depends on the determination of global trends and the creation of healthy policies, Central Bank head Durmuş Yılmaz said in İstanbul yesterday.
BULGARIA: Bulgaria Economy Will Start to Recover in 2011
The Bulgarian economy will start to recover in 2011 according to Bulgaria Prime Minister Boyko Borisov. Borisov was speaking during the parliament debate at the first reading of the draft 2010 State Budget bill proposed by the center-right GERB government and Finance Minister Simeon Djankov. He presented the main parameters of the government’s economic policy for 2010 stating that GERB will ensure that spending is kept under control. Borisov set the main objective of maintaining fiscal stability.
ROMANIA: Romstal Plans to Invest in Wind Energy
The Romanian group Romstal, dealing mainly in building materials, has long-term plans to develop an agricultural farm and a wind farm of 30-50 MW in the Constanta County, where it owns several thousands of hectares, with power sales due to account for a quarter of the group’s sales in the future, Mediafax reports. “The production of sustainable energy has a future and will bring a reasonable income over a medium and long term. Within 10 years, we would like it to account for 20-25 pc of the group’s incomes,” said the majority shareholder in the group, Enrico Perini.
TURKEY: Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline Capacity Increases by 20 pct
Caspian oil is carried to Europe from Adana’s Ceyhan terminal. The capacity of the BP-backed Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan [BTC] pipeline has been raised from 1 million barrels to 1.2 million barrels per day thanks to the investments made by BP, BP Turkey President Can Suphi said on Thursday, adding that the company’s goal is to start operating the pipeline at full capacity in the near future.
TURKEY: Turkish, Spanish Firms Sign USD 1 bn Energy Agreement
Turkey's Saran Holding and Spain's Fersa signed on Friday a partnership deal including a USD 1 bn investment in Turkey in renewable energy resources. The agreement was signed at a ceremony in the Turkish capital city of Ankara with the participation of Turkish State Minister for foreign trade Zafer Çağlayan, Energy Minister Taner Yıldız and Spanish Ambassador in Ankara Joan Klos. The agreement includes the construction of hydroelectric power plants in the eastern provinces of Tunceli and Erzurum and in the southern province of Antalya. The projects are expected to employ 1 500 people.
ROMANIA: EBRD Official Urges Romania to Form a Government
Forming a government is one of the immediate tasks that Romania has to accomplish in its efforts to answer the economic crisis and in order to avoid delays in the decision-making process, in the implementation of reforms and in the application of the agreement reached with the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission, Erik Berglof, chief economist of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said according to Realitatea.net.
ROMANIA: No Need for Tax Hike During Recession!’ BNR Governor Warns
Mugur Isarescu continues to plead for savings and investments. An elections year should not destabilize the economy. The optimal adjustment solution for Romania aims at public expenditures, in the sense of reducing the expenditures on wages and the financial expenditures and of focusing on investments, with one of the alternatives to that consisting of tax hikes, ‘which is precisely what we don’t need during a recession,’ Mugur Isarescu, the Governor of the National Bank of Romania (BNR), stated yesterday in a speech delivered to the Academy of Economic Studies (ASE) on the occasion of receiving the Virgil Madgearu diploma and a gold medal for his activity within the financial-economic domain.
BULGARIA: Impeachment of President Would Be Bad for Bulgaria
Bulgaria PM Boyko Borisov has stated that the impeachment of President Georgi Parvanov would not be good for the country at the current time. Borisov said that he was ready to convene consultations to solve the conflict between several rightist political parties and Parvanov. According to Borisov a possible impeachment will lead to a negative impact on Bulgaria in Europe. He also added that Parvanov’s position as Head of State is a concrete post as it gives him control over the Constitutional Court.
seeurope.net - Your Information Gateway for Southeast Europe
Balkanalysis.com Invites Potential Partners for New Operations
A special note from Balkanalysis.com Director Chris Deliso.
Apologies in advance for the length of this special notification. However, if you are a regular reader of this website, or a prospective contributor or institutional partner, I would be most grateful to have a moment of your time to read it. It marks an important moment in [...]
Balkanalysis.com Announces Summer Hiatus, Reprogramming Period
Balkanalysis.com would like to inform its readers that the website will be on annual summer hiatus from now until mid-September. During this period, we will also be experimenting with some new programming and design solutions in our continuing quest to provide you with a wider and better variety of services. Readers can feel free [...]
The South Stream Pipeline and the Environmental Factor
By Ioannis Michaletos
The South Stream pipeline project is a complex technical endeavor which entails a wide array of factors, including that of environmental protection.
The present assessment concerning South Stream’s environmental impact reveals opposing views from multiple actors vying for answers, concessions and influence alike.
Furthermore, the South Stream project in terms of environmental research lacks [...]
Photo of the Week
The last village. Ikaria, Greece
Photo of the Week
Beyond here lies nothing. Georgian Military Highway, Georgia
Exploring Byzantine Cartographies: Ancient Science, Christian Cosmology, and Geopolitics in Byzantine Imperial Mapping
By Alex G. Papadopoulos, Ph.D.
Department of Geography
DePaul University, Chicago
This short paper on Byzantine maps and geographic science was born out of a conversation with Christopher Deliso, director of Balkanalysis.com. We agreed that there is a need to look at southeastern Europe – the Balkans – from a spatial (geographical) analytical perspective. Our understanding of the [...]
Photo of the Week
Everybody loves a military parade. Istanbul, Turkey
Modernism in Serbia: The Elusive Margins of Belgrade Architecture, 1919-1941
Modernism in Serbia: The Elusive Margins of Belgrade Architecture, 1919-1941
By Ljiljana Blagojevic
MIT Press (2003), 300 pp.
Reviewed by Christopher Deliso
Architecture has long commanded public attention in the Balkans. Swedish diplomats lament the low-quality granite used not long ago to create public thoroughfares in Kosovo – itself an experiment in building – and organized debates are sparked [...]
Emerging Water Industries in Greece
By Ioannis Michaletos*
Water management is attracting the attention of businessmen in Greece, especially when it is related to the water cycle and energy production. Dams, water transmission pipelines, water depots, and seawater desalination plants are all included in the five-year plan that the Karamanlis administration has relayed recently to the press, as a plan to [...]
Photo of the Week
Mortal combat. Heracleia, Macedonia
Balkanalysis.com
Volume 10, Number 2, August 2008
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 10, Number 2, August 2008.
Loaded on 2008-08-11
Volume 9, Number 2, August 2007
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 9, Number 2, August 2007.
Loaded on 2007-12-11
Volume 9, Number 1, April 2007
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 9, Number 1, April 2007.
Loaded on 2007-12-11
Volume 8, Number 3, December 2006
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 8, Number 3, December 2006.
Loaded on 2006-12-07
Volume 8, Number 2, August 2006
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 8, Number 2, August 2006.
Loaded on 2006-09-11
Volume 8, Number 1, April 2006
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 8, Number 1, April 2006.
Loaded on 2006-04-26
Volume 7, Number 3, Number 3/December 2005
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 7, Number 3, Number 3/December 2005.
Loaded on 2006-01-04
Volume 7, Number 2, August, 2005
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 7, Number 2, August, 2005.
Loaded on 2005-09-17
Volume 7, Number 1, April, 2005
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 7, Number 1, April, 2005.
Loaded on 2005-07-21
Volume 6, Number 3, December 2004
Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans, Volume 6, Number 3, December 2004.
Loaded on 2005-07-21
Recent Issues of Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans
RSS feed of the 10 most recently published issues of Journal of Southern Europe and the Balkans
"Bosnien am Scheideweg", Louise Arbour in Die Zeit
Read op-ed
"Donner une chance à la Bosnie en l'intégrant à l'Europe", Louise Arbour in Rue 89
Read op-ed
"Bosnia's Continuing Chaos", Louise Arbour in Foreign Policy
Read op-ed
Bosnia’s Dual Crisis
The international community should take a firm decision to reinforce and transform its engagement in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) at the 18-19 November meeting of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) or risk growing instability. Since the end of the war in 1995, Bosnia's leaders, supervised by the Office of the High Representative (OHR), have made slow progress towards creation of a functional common state. The conflict between Serb leaders and the OHR now risks creating a real crisis and undermining the functioning of the Bosnian state. The PIC should reinforce the Bosnian state, close OHR and create strong alternative stabilising measures, including a reinforced EU Special Representative with a strong mandate, an extended EUFOR mandate and rapid NATO membership.
CrisisWatch N°75, 1 November 2009
Three actual or potential conflict situations around the world deteriorated and four improved in October 2009, according to CrisisWatch. In Pakistan a military operation against the Taliban in South Waziristan triggered a brutal escalation in militant attacks. Over 150 were killed in Iraq by several explosions that hit government buildings in Baghdad, while parliamentarians failed to reach agreement on a crucial electoral law. In Zimbabwe, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai disengaged from the unity government. The situation improved in Nigeria’s Niger Delta, Honduras, Armenia/Turkey and Mali. CrisisWatch again identifies a conflict resolution opportunity between Armenia and Turkey for November, and a conflict risk alert for Afghanistan.
Kosovo: Štrpce, a Model Serb Enclave?
Local elections on 15 November provide a key opportunity for Kosovo Serbs to choose their own representatives and push forward on decentralisation, if they do not listen to Belgrade’s calls to boycott. This latest briefing from the International Crisis Group focuses on the Štrpce municipality, one of southern Kosovo’s largest Serb enclaves, to demonstrate how Serb communities can protect their interests within Kosovo’s constitutional order. Belgrade, Pristina and the international community should encourage voting and thereafter equip the municipal government with the expanded powers and resources it needs.
CrisisWatch N°74, 1 October 2009
Read full report
Crisis Group - Balkans
The International Crisis Group (Crisis Group) is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organisation committed to preventing and resolving deadly conflict.
Cyprus: Unification on the Table
As Cyprus’s new president brings the nation closer to unification, the EU comes one step closer to Jerusalem.
Malta and Cyprus Adopt Euro
The European Union cements its influence in the Mediterranean.
EU Extorts Turks Before Giving Them the Boot
Cyprus Joins European Defense Alliance
History is playing out in Cyprus once more.
theTrumpet.com: Cyprus
theTrumpet.com -- Understand your world.
Karadzic: Richard Harvey Appointed as Defence Attorney
The Registrar's Office of the Hague Tribunal appoints British attorney Richard Harvey as Radovan Karadzic's Defence attorney.
Macedonia’s PM: “Not Preparing Snap Polls”
Macedonian Prime Minister and leader of the centre right VMRO DPMNE party said that a memo he recently sent to his supporters does not mean he is considering early elections.
ICJ Decision on Kosovo to Be Vague
The President of the International Court of Justice, ICJ, Hisashi Owada says that the Court’s advisory opinion on whether Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence went against international law will not be "a clear yes or no".
Bosnia Press Review - November 20
Here are the top stories in Bosnia and Herzegovina's main newspapers. Balkan Insight has not verified the reports and cannot vouch for their accuracy.
Albania Remains Balkans Bribe Heaven
Although more than half Albanian nationals admit of having paid a bribe during last year, their believe that their standard of living has improved and identify more readily with current politicians, a new study reveals.
Kosovo Press Review - November 20
Here are the top stories in Kosovo’s main newspapers. Balkan Insight has not verified the reports and cannot vouch for their accuracy.
Albania Opposition to Hold Three Day Rally
Albania’s opposition Socialist Party is expected to stage a major rally in Tirana on Friday through to Sunday, calling for a recount of the ballots from the 28 June parliamentary elections, which it considered to have been marred by fraud.
Romania Press Review - November 20
Here are the top stories in Romania’s main newspapers. Balkan Insight has not verified the reports and cannot vouch for their accuracy.
Bulgaria Faces Mounting Rubbish Threat
Bulgaria may be taken to the European Court of Justice over its inadequate waste management Sofia, two years after the European Commission launched an infringement procedure on the issue.
Macedonia Press Review – November 20
Here are the top stories in Macedonia’s main newspapers. Balkan Insight has not verified the reports and cannot vouch for their accuracy.
Croatia’s New Minister Warns of ‘Painful’ Measures
Croatia’s new Economy Minister Djuro Popijac has warned that his government will have to take painful steps to tackle the country’s economic problems.
Serbia Press Review - November 20
Here are the top stories in Serbia’s main newspapers. Balkan Insight has not verified the reports and cannot vouch for their accuracy.
Bosnia Gives Green Light to EIB Loans
Bosnia's central government gave the approval for loans from the European Investment Bank, EIB, totaling 90 million euros, which are to be used to support small and medium-size companies.
Frustrated Bosnian Shoots Mayor
A local major in Bosnia was shot at during a meeting with labor unions, but his life is not in danger, police said.
Kosovo Government Coalition Collapses
Kosovo’s government coalition has collapsed, it emerged on Thursday night.
Violent Incidents Take Shine off Historic Kosovo Poll
Widespread praise heaped on Kosovo’s institutions for exemplary conduct of first post-independence election may have overstepped the mark a little.
Powers Worried At Bosnia's Lack of Progress
Representatives of the world’s leading powers expressed ‘serious concern’ over the lack of progress in Bosnia, calling on the local leaders to refrain from maximalist positions that hinder their country’s progress in Euro-Atlantic integrations.
Kosovo Vote Counting Continues
Ninety one out of 2,156 result forms received today by 1:30 pm at Kosovo's vote counting centre have been put aside due to irregularities.
Church Factions Battle for Serb Patriarch’s Throne
A battle between the Serbian Orthodox Church’s conservative and liberal wings is likely to resume as soon as the candles around the grave of Patriarch Pavle’s die out and is sure to heat up as the time to elect a successor approaches.
Report: Government Spins Media Over “Name”
Recent Macedonian media reports that Athens has radicalized its position in the name talks with Skopje are false, unnamed high ranking Brussels diplomats told local media on Thursday.
BalkanInsight.com
BalkanInsight.com main RSS feed