Europe-East articles from February 2009

Europe-East archives from February 2009

EU/BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA : AUSTRIA'S INZKO TO SUCCEED LAJCAK AS SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE.
February 26, 2009... The EU's foreign ministers decided, on 23 February, to appoint Austrian diplomat Valentin Inzko as the EU's special representative (EUSR) for Bosnia and Herzegovina, replacing Miroslav Lajcak, who became foreign minister of Slovakia last month....

JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS : ASYLUM, IMMIGRATION, JUSTICE: WHAT'S IN STORE FOR 2009?
February 26, 2009... As the current European Commission reaches the end of its mandate, there are still issues in the justice, freedom and security domain, particularly with regard to asylum, that need to be addressed. Europolitics New Neighbours brings its...

EU/US : BALKANS NO LONGER A MAJOR SECURITY THREAT, REPORTS SAY.
February 26, 2009... Afghanistan, Iran, Russia and Israel-Palestine: these are the four regions where the EU and the US must step up cooperation on security. That, at least, is the conclusion of two reports from US and EU think tanks presented at the Johns Hopkins...

HOME AFFAIRS : COMMISSION PROPOSES EUROPEAN ASYLUM SUPPORT OFFICE.
February 26, 2009... The European Commission proposed, on 18 February, to establish a European asylum support office with the objective of improving the coordination of asylum policies in the EU. According to statistics presented by Vice-President Jacques...

ENLARGEMENT : COURT OF AUDITORS SLAMS COMMISSION OVER ISPA IMPLEMENTATION.(implementation of the Structural Policies for Pre-accession)(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... The EU Court of Auditors (ECA) - an EU financial watchdog - has criticised the European Commission for irregularities in implementation of the Structural Policies for Pre-accession (ISPA) fund in 2000-2006. According to a special report issued...

IMMIGRATION : EP ENDORSES PENALTIES FOR EMPLOYERS OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS.
February 26, 2009... The European Parliament adopted, on 19 February, its formal position on the directive establishing penalties for employers of illegal immigrants and ensuring legal pay conditions for such workers. At its plenary session in Brussels, the EP...

IMMIGRATION : EP POSTPONES FORMAL ADOPTION OF SANCTIONS DIRECTIVE.
February 26, 2009... MEPs approved, on 4 February, the compromise worked out with the Council on the draft directive sanctioning employers of illegal immigrants, but postponed adoption of the resolution to the plenary session on 18-19 February at the request of...

EU/KOSOVO : EP URGES FULL EU RECOGNITION OF KOSOVO.
February 26, 2009... Less than two weeks before the first anniversary of Kosovo's declaration of independence, the European Parliament has recommended that the EU countries that have not yet recognised Kosovo as a new state should do so. The Parliament "encourages...

EU/KOSOVO : EU CALLS ON SERBIA TO COOPERATE.(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... The success of the European mission EULEX in Kosovo [responsible for helping institutions in Kosovo in the areas of justice, the police and customs] depends on the cooperation of Kosovo Serbs, which itself depends on Belgrade. "As a result,...

EU/SERBIA : EU MAY UNBLOCK BELGRADE'S ASSOCIATION ACCORD IN MARCH.(Stabilisation and Association Agreement )(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... It is highly likely that the European Union will unfreeze an interim trade agreement with Serbia and launch the ratification process of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) - the gateway to EU membership - in March, a high-ranking...

IMMIGRATION : EU TO PENALISE EMPLOYERS OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS.
February 26, 2009... Over the past two years, the European Union has considerably stepped up its arsenal of instruments to combat illegal immigration. In the wake of the very controversial directive on the return of illegal immigrants to their country of origin...

EU/ARMENIA : EU VISIT EXPLORES CLOSER TRADE TIES WITH YEREVAN.(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... A team of European Commission experts was due to arrive in Yerevan, on 18 February, on a fact-finding mission designed to prepare the ground for negotiations on a sweeping free trade agreement with Armenia that would bolster economic ties...

ENERGY : GAZPROM BOSS CRITICISES UKRAINE ON COMMISSIONER'S BLOG.
February 26, 2009... The gas crisis in January, which led to the complete halt of supplies to numerous Central and South-East European countries, has now spread to Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs' blog (blogs.ec.europa.eu/piebalgs). Gazprom Deputy Chairman...

EU/UKRAINE : LITTLE ENTHUSIASM FOR RUSSIA'S CONSORTIUM PROPOSAL.
February 26, 2009... Ukraine and the European Union have showed little interest in Russia's idea to form a consortium of Russian, Ukrainian and EU partners that would overlook natural gas transit through Ukraine to Europe. At their bilateral EU-Ukraine troika...

EU/CROATIA/SLOVENIA : LJUBLJANA "READY" TO ACCEPT EU MEDIATION IN CROATIA DISPUTE.
February 26, 2009... If the European Union wants to see more countries from the Western Balkans to join its ranks, it should strive to find solution to the border conflicts there first, said Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor, on 13 February in Ljubljana.a"If we...

EU/TURKEY : LOCAL ELECTIONS SLOW DOWN ANKARA'S ACCESSION PROCESS.
February 26, 2009... Not much progress has been made by Turkey in its EU accession negotiations since December 2008, when two new chapters were opened for talks, an EU diplomat told Europolitics New Neighbours. The reforms necessary for another two chapters to be...

EU/UKRAINE : LYTVYN: GAS CONSORTIUM PROPOSAL "ACCEPTABLE".
February 26, 2009... A three-party international consortium involving Ukraine, Russia and the EU guaranteeing Ukraine the ownership right of that country's gas transit system would be the most acceptable solution to the problems that have caused the recent...

ENERGY SECURITY : MEPS DEBATE ENERGY GOALS FOR 2050.
February 26, 2009... The European Parliament called once again, in a vote on 3 February, for a common European energy policy. The EU should speak with the proverbial single voice', said MEPs adopting a report by Anne Laperrouze (ALDE, France). Laperrouze's...

EU/TURKEY : MEPS WANT ANKARA TO WITHDRAW TROOPS FROM CYPRUS.
February 26, 2009... Amid ongoing talks between Greek and Turkish Cypriots on the island's reunification, the European Parliament has called on Turkey - close ally of the Turkish Cypriot community - to "facilitate a suitable climate" for a settlement by...

UNION FOR THE MEDITERRANEAN : MEPS WARN AGAINST DUPLICATION OF EU INSTITUTIONS.(member of parliament)(European Union)
February 26, 2009... The European Parliament has called for the existing Euro-Med Parliamentary Assembly to be incorporated into the institutional structure of the Union for the Mediterranean - a newly created process bringing together the 27 EU member states and...

ENLARGEMENT : NEW ICELANDIC GOVERNMENT CAUTIOUS TOWARDS EU BID.(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... Iceland's potential EU membership continues to be one of the priority items on the agenda of the country's new centre-left government (which was formed on 1 February), said the new Prime Minister, Johanna Sigurdardottir. She made it clear,...

EU/CROATIA/SLOVENIA : PREMIERS MAKE NO PROGRESS ON BORDER ROW.(European Union)(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... No breakthrough was achieved at a meeting, on 24 February, between Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader and his Slovenian counterpart, Borut Pahor, in he two countries' 17-year-old border dispute, which has been hampering Zagreb's progress in...

PUTIN CALLS FOR NEW ENERGY CHARTER.(Vladimir Putin)(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... Russia is ready to take into account the energy interests of the EU member states, but expects the same attitude from the Union, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has said, commenting on the prospects for future EU-Russia cooperation in the...

ENLARGEMENT : RECENT ENLARGEMENTS A "MAJOR" ECONOMIC SUCCESS, SAYS EU EXEC.
February 26, 2009... The big bang' enlargement of 2004, when eight Central and Eastern European countries(1), as well as Cyprus and Malta joined the then 15-member European Union, and the following 2007 accession of Bulgaria and Romania, qualify as a "major...

ENLARGEMENT : REHN: ENLARGED EU CAN RESPOND BETTER TO NEW CHALLENGES.(Report)(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... "The conclusions of the report on the economic achievements and challenges of the fifth and sixth EU enlargements are optimistic and will allow us to tackle common challenges," said the Commissioner responsible for enlargement, Olli Rehn. With...

EU/SERBIA : REHN TELLS BELGRADE TO PUT EU MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION ON HOLD.
February 26, 2009... The European Commission does not show much enthusiasm for Serbia's plan to apply for EU candidate status before the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) is unblocked and put forward for ratification in the member sates. "A...

EU/RUSSIA : TALKS ON STRATEGIC ACCORD ENTER SUBSTANTIVE PHASE.(World Trade Organization)(Brief article)
February 26, 2009... Negotiations between the EU and Russia on a new strategic agreement are entering a new phase, with the parties starting to draft the actual text, Russia's EU Ambassador and the chief negotiator to the talks, Vladimir Chizhov, told Europolitics...

EASTERN PARTNERSHIP : TALKS PROGRESS BUT DIVISIONS LINGER.(Conference news)
February 26, 2009... The first formal discussion at ministerial level on the Eastern Partnership project, held on 23 February during the Foreign Affairs Council, showed lingering tensions within the EU between proponents of the eastern and southern neighbours. The...

EU/CROATIA : TEMPORARY MEASURES AGREED IN ZAGREB'S ACCESSION TALKS.
February 26, 2009... Although there are still a few months before Croatia is expected to conclude its accession talks with the EU, the terms and conditions concerning temporary derogations from the acquis communautaire the country had requested have already been...

EU/US/RUSSIA : WASHINGTON OUTLINES NEW APPROACH TO DEFENCE.(Conference news)
February 26, 2009... A fundamentally different approach from the US administration towards European defence was outlined by Vice-President Joe Biden at the Munich security conference last weekend. Biden voiced only very conditional support for one of the flagships...

INTERVIEW WITH IVAN SIMONOVIC, JUSTICE MINISTER OF CROATIA : WE SHOULD AVOID CREATING A DANGEROUS PRECEDENT.(Interview)
February 26, 2009... The insufficientcapacity and efficiency of Croatia's judiciary system, the continued urgency of full cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the border dispute with Slovenia are the most serious...

EU/CROATIA : ZAGREB'S EU BID IN JEOPARDY OVER COOPERATION WITH UN TRIBUNAL.
February 26, 2009... Citing the equal treatment rule' applicable during membership negotiations to all Western Balkan countries, the EU member states want Croatia to fully cooperate with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in the...