‘Germany pressures Serbia over Kosovo’

Danas, 28 June 2013

On June 27, the German parliament endorsed a declaration proposed by the ruling majority, recommending “negotiations on Serbia’s accession to the EU should begin in January 2014”, if there is a consensus at the European Council meeting in December 2013 that “Belgrade has ‘fully and permanently’ fulfilled its obligations with regard to the normalisation agreement with Pristina”, reportsDanas.

Kosovo Talks End Without Agreement

DAN BILEFSKY

PARIS — Marathon talks aimed at overcoming ethnic divisions in Kosovo ended without an agreement on Wednesday, dealing a potential blow to Serbia’s aspirations to join the European Union and undermining hopes of improved stability in the Balkans.

KOSOVO: ‘Government adopts Ashton Plan for North’

Koha Ditore, 28 March 2013

On March 27, Pristina adopted an eight-point plan, proposed by European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton, which is designed to regulate collaboration with Serbian-run local governments in Northern Kosovo.

First proposed on March 21, the Ashton plan defines the terms and conditions under which the local governments can take charge of specific duties, and rules for cooperation between them.

BALKANS: ‘Belgrade and Pristina reach agreement’

Blic, 14 March 2013

Citing EU sources, the daily reports that Serbia and Kosovo have reached agreement on the creation and powers to be given to a group of Serbian-majority municipalities in northern Kosovo.

Serbia’s relations with Kosovo are the main obstacle to the start of formal negotiations on the country’s accession to the EU.

Kosovo and Serbia Presidents Due For Historic Meet

The Presidents of Kosovo and Serbia will sit down at the same table on Wednesday for the first time since Kosovo declared independence in 2008 in order to "normalise" relations.

Atifete Jahjaga and Tomislav Nikolic are to meet Catherine Ashton, EU Foreign Policy Chief, in Brussels on Wednesday to symbolically back the ongoing dialogue between the two sides.

Russia Agrees Loan for Serbian Railways

Ministers from Belgrade and Moscow have signed a deal on a 600 million euro Russian export loan to finance rail infrastructure in Serbia.

The Serbian and Russian finance ministers, Mladjan Dinkic and Anton Siluanov, have signed a deal in Moscow on a government loan for Serbia's state-owned railway company.

The contract, signed at the weekend, envisions using the money to build and electrify a second 16-kilometre section of the Belgrade-Pancevo railway and construct a single-track 68-kilometre line linking Valjevo and Loznica in western Serbia.

Serbian Prime Minister ‘Dačić: provisional agreement on customs taxes’

Politika, 18 January 2013

Serbian Prime Minister Ivica Dačić has met with his Kosovar counterpart Hashim Thaci in Brussels, under the auspices of the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton. On Thursday night and in the early hours of Friday morning, the two men concluded an agreement on customs taxes to be charged at the border between their two states. The revenue generated will be used to create a special fund managed by the EU that will finance development in northern Kosovo, which is home to the country’s Serbian minority.

Serbia to Adopt Kosovo Platform in New Year

As Kosovo Serbs lend support to Serbia's 'platform' on Kosovo, the document is to go before parliament by January 7.

Bojana Barlovac BIRN Belgrade

After several hours of discussion, 150 representatives from the Serb-run north of Kosovo on Tuesday offered to support the Serbian government's official platform for Kosovo.

Belgrade Demands Self Rule for Kosovo Serbs

Belgrade seek broadest self rule for an 'Autonomous Community of Serbian Municipalities in Kosovo', Serbia's draft platform on Kosovo reads.

Bojana Barlovac, Edona Peci Beta Belgrade

Serbian authorities demand a high level of territorial and political autonomy for Serbian municipalities there, the platform on which the country's officials agreed on Sunday reads.

These include Strpce and Gracanica in central and southern Kosovo, and Mitrovica, Leposavic, Zubin Potok and Zvecan in the north.

UN Chief Hails 'Constructive' Kosovo Talks

BIRN Belgrade

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's quarterly report welcomes advances in Serbia-Kosovo talks and expresses hopes that it will lead to total normalisation of relations and lasting peace.

In his regular quarterly report, UN Secretary General encouraged Serbia and Kosovo to continue their EU-led dialogue and move ahead in applying existing agreements.

Critical EU Report Leaves Serbs Divided

While some Serbian officials say the sternly worded report presents a true picture of the situation, others have reacted much more defensively.

Serbian officials are split on how to respond to a critical EU report on the country, which cited limited progress in internal reforms and demanded an improvement in relations with Kosovo.

Suzana Grubjesic, Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, said the report was not positive or negative but an objective assessment of the state of the implementation of reforms over the past year.

Serbian Prosecutors Seize Ex-Minister’s Passport The Serbian prosecutor’s office for organised crime has seized the passport of a former minister suspected of abusing his position.

Tanjug, Danas

The passport of Oliver Dulic, the former minister for environment and spatial planning, was sent to Belgrade’s High Court on Sunday to prevent him from leaving the country.

 The court has yet to decide whether Dulic, a member of the opposition Democratic Party, can travel as planned to Canada on October 20 as part of a parliamentary delegation.

Parliament has already revoked Dulic’s immunity from prosecution.  

Prosecutors are investigating allegations that Dulic abused his position by illegally issuing permits to a Slovenian company to lay optical cable along Serbian roads.

Serbia tells EU to shove Central Bank independence

It was not so long ago that I offered to help improve Serbia's chances of EU accession by going on a Soldier of Fortune-inspired "Ratko Hunt 2010." Just when you thought that Serbia's path to EU membership has been smoothed out by the capture (or death) of the "Big Three" war criminals Slobodan Milosevic, Radovan Karadzic and finally Ratko Mladic, the Serbs go ahead and throw a curveball. Or, for a more appropriate sporting analogy, hit a moonball into the heart of Europe.

Chinese Company Offers to Build Seria's Corridor 11

Hong Kong based company has sent an offer to Serbia for the construction of the remaining sections of the Corridor 11 highway which will connect Belgrade to the South Adriatic.

Serbia and Montenegro may finally get connected with a highway.

This comes after China Road and Bridge Corporation, CRBC, has sent an offer for the construction of the remaining sections of the Corridor 11 to the Corridors of Serbia company.

A total value of the 270-kilometre-long section is estimated to cost 2.6 billion euro and the Chinese would finance the project from a 10 billion euro loan intended for Eastern European countries.