Europe-East articles from January 2009

Europe-East archives from January 2009

IMMIGRATION : EP AND COUNCIL AGREE ON PENALISING EMPLOYERS OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS.
January 29, 2009... Should the employers of undocumented residents be punished instead of the illegal residents themselves? That is the EU's stated objective given the widespread practice of employing such persons in construction, agriculture and hotels, with...

EU/EASTERN PARTNERSHIP : EURONEST TO KICK OFF AFTER JUNE EP ELECTIONS.
January 29, 2009... Following the endorsement by the EU member states of the Eastern Partnership project at the European Council last June, a parliamentary assembly, EURONEST, for relations with the Eastern neighbouring countries, will be created in the European...

ENERGY : GAS DISPUTE SHIFTS TO BRUSSELS.
January 29, 2009... Action shifted clearly to Brussels, on 8 January, with both Ukrainian and Russian delegations present in the European Parliament and the Commission. The EP's Foreign Affairs Committee held a special meeting. Commission President Jose Manuel...

GILLES JANVIER: "aWE HAD TO BE OPERATIONAL VERY FASTa".(Interview)
January 29, 2009... General Gilles Janvier, from the French police (gendarmerie), is second in command of EUMM Georgia. He explains the mission's operating arrangements. What challenges has this mission faced from the beginning? The first challenge - and...

INFORMATION, THE NERVE OF WAR.
January 29, 2009... For several days, Europolitics has been able to follow the work of the European Monitoring Mission (EUMM) in Georgia, both on the field and at headquarters. The mission's main task is to ensure that the conditions set out in the...

DEFENCE : JOSCHKA FISCHER: RUSSIA SHOULD BE OFFERED MEMBERSHIP OF NATO.
January 29, 2009... In an article published in several European newspapers, in the framework of project syndicate, the former German Foreign Affairs Minister (Greens), Joschka Fischer, proposes involving Russia more with European defence, or even expanding NATO to...

SECURITY SITUATION REMAINS VOLATILE.
January 29, 2009... In Georgia, more than two months after the war in August, the situation is still very tense and incidents are commonplace. The tension on the ground is palpable even if it is difficult to be sure how much is reality and how much is in people's...

THE MISSION'S FOUR CHALLENGES.
January 29, 2009... The obstacles and challenges confronting the European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) in Georgia are unlike those faced by other European missions (Chad, Somalia and Kosovo) VISIBILITY This is one of the observers' leading concerns....

ESDP MISSION/GEORGIA : AGREEMENT CONCLUDED ON TROOPS MOVEMENT MEASURES.
January 29, 2009... The European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) in Georgia and the Ministry of Defence of Georgia signed a memorandum of understanding, on 26 January, stipulating certain restrictions on the movements of Georgian armed forces near the...

EU/TURKEY : ANKARA NAMES NEW CHIEF EU NEGOTIATOR.
January 29, 2009... Over three years since the start of its EU accession talks, in October 2005, Turkey has decided to change its negotiation strategy and create a new state ministry responsible specifically for handling EU affairs. To date, this role has been...

EU/GREECE/FYROM : BAKOYANNIS CRITICISES SKOPJE'S "NATIONALIST RHETORIC".
January 29, 2009... Greece favours the integration of all the Western Balkan countries with the EU, but strongly insists that the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) has to abandon its "populist" approach and truly look for a compromise solution to the...

ENERGY : BARROSO: EU TAKEN HOSTAGE TO RUSSIA-UKRAINE GAS DISPUTE.
January 29, 2009... As the gas dispute worsened, with supplies of Russian gas to the EU via Ukraine (not Belarus or other routes) being fully cut to most European countries, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso spoke, on the morning of 7 January, to...

EU/SERBIA : BELGRADE INVITES EU MISSION TO CHECK ICTY COOPERATION.(International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia)
January 29, 2009... Serbia has invited the EU to dispatch a fact-finding mission to the country to verify that the government in Belgrade has been fully cooperating with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). "The proposal is...

EU/SERBIA : BELGRADE TO APPLY FOR EU CANDIDATE STATUS IN APRIL.
January 29, 2009... Following Montenegro's example(1), Serbia intends to submit a formal application for EU candidate status in the first half of 2009. Serbian Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic stated, on 6 January, that his government is preparing to make such a...

EU/SERBIA : BELGRADE TO START APPLYING INTERIM TRADE AGREEMENT AS OF 1 FEBRUARY.
January 29, 2009... In a bid to reinforce its links with the EU, the Serbian government has announced that it will unilaterally start implementing an interim trade agreement with the Union as of 1 February. In practice, it means that a free trade area between...

BORDER MANAGEMENT/IMMIGRATIO : COMMISSION ADOPTS 23 NATIONAL PROGRAMMES.
January 29, 2009... A new set of approvals by the European Commission - very voluminous this time - of 23 multi-year programmes, with their respective budget, under the European initiative for "solidarity and the management of migratory flows (2007-2013). To...

EU/CROATIA/SLOVENIA : COMMISSION ASKS AHTISAARI TO MEDIATE IN BORDER DISPUTE.(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... The European Commission has proposed setting up a special senior expert group with a distinguished expert in conflict resolution, Martti Ahtisaari, as chairman to help Croatia and Slovenia to solve their border dispute. The information was...

EU/CROATIA/SLOVENIA : COMMISSION TAKES INITIATIVE TO END BORDER ROW.
January 29, 2009... With time running out fast, the European Commission is stepping up its pressure on Slovenia and Croatia to settle their border dispute as soon as possible to prevent further delay in Zagreb's accession negotiations. During his one-day visit to...

ENLARGEMENT : CONCLUSION OF CROATIA TALKS BY END-2009.
January 29, 2009... The Western Balkans will again focus high on the EU agenda in the first half of 2009. Following Slovenia's example, the Czech Presidency wants to bring the region closer to the EU. "The Balkans have always been important to us. Our aim is to...

EU/WESTERN BALKANS : COUNCIL WANTS RAPID PROGRESS IN INVESTMENT FRAMEWORK.(Report)(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... The Ecofin Council has called for more rapid and substantial progress in the implementation of an investment framework for the Western Balkans. On 20 January in Brussels, it adopted conclusions on the initiative of the European Commission, the...

EU/BELARUS/MOLDOVA/UKRAINE : COURT OF AUDITORS FLASHES YELLOW CARD TO COMMISSION.
January 29, 2009... The EU's financial watchdog has criticised the European Commission for its poor performance in delivering financial assistance in the field of freedom, security and justice to Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus. In its report, issued on 15 January,...

EU/SERBIA : DON'T MAKE EU MEMBERSHIP HOSTAGE TO SREBRENICA, SAYS AMBASSADOR.
January 29, 2009... Serbia's chances of joining the EU must not be held hostage by the 1995 genocide of Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica, Serbia's Ambassador to the US Ivan Vujacic has said. Asked about the Netherlands' insistence that Serbia's EU membership process...

EU/KOSOVO : EP COMMITTEE WARNS AGAINST KOSOVO PARTITION.(European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo)(Report)(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... The members of the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee firmly oppose all attempts to partition Kosovo. In a resolution on Kosovo and the role of the EU, drafted by MEP Joost Lagendijk (Greens, the Netherlands) and adopted on 21...

EU/TURKEY : ERDOGAN PLEDGES TO SPEED UP ACCESSION TALKS.(Recep Tayyip Erdogan)
January 29, 2009... Faced with growing criticism within the EU over the prolonged stalemate in the country's EU-related reforms, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has pledged to revitalise the integration process in 2009. "From now on, the process will...

IMMIGRATION : EU BORDERS: COMMISSION ADOPTS 12 NATIONAL PROGRAMMES.
January 29, 2009... Among the European funds for solidarity and management of migratory flows' (2007-2013), the European Commission adopted, on 18 December, another set of 12 funds, this time exclusively for external borders', as well as respective annual...

ENERGY : EU CALLS RUSSIAN GAS CUTS "UNACCEPTABLE".
January 29, 2009... In a joint statement, the Czech EU Presidency and the European Commission noted that substantial cuts in Russian gas supplies to the EU are "unacceptable". Gas supplies should be restored "immediately" and Ukraine and Russia should resume...

EU/MOLDOVA : EU HELPS CHISINAU FACE GAS CRISIS.
January 29, 2009... On 12 January, a shipment of electric generators and large capacity heaters was sent to Moldova by Austria. This intervention takes place in the framework of the European Union's Civil Protection Mechanism, which Chisinau evoked in the evening...

ENERGY : EU WELCOMES GAS RESUMPTION, DRAWS LESSONS FROM CRISIS.
January 29, 2009... Gazprom confirmed resuming, at 10:00 on 20 January, deliveries through Ukraine of 423.8 million cubic metres (MCM) of gas per day. A total of 348.8 MCM are intended for export to Europe and 75 MCM are for Ukrainian consumers. This effectively...

FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR EASTERN EUROPE.(European Union. European Investment Bank)(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... Germany and Austria are said to support a European plan for the stabilisation of Eastern European financial systems to limit the particularly severe impact of the global crisis in these countries. "We have a common responsibility for...

FIGHT AGAINST ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION : GREECE, MALTA, ITALY AND CYPRUS DEMAND CONCRETE ACTIONS.
January 29, 2009... The fight against illegal immigration still has to be invented, according to a letter sent, on 13 January, by four European countries - Greece, Malta, Italy and Cyprus - to the Czech EU Presidency and the European Commission. Two days later, at...

EU/FYROM : ICG: MACEDONIA NAME DISPUTE JEOPARDISES STABILITY IN W BALKANS.(Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia)(North Atlantic Treaty Organization)(European Union)(Conference news)
January 29, 2009... An international think tank has urged a quick end to the long-standing name row between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), warning that "the dispute between Athens and Skopje over Macedonia's name puts at risk the...

IEA: "SHADOW OVER RUSSIA'S REPUTATION".
January 29, 2009... The International Energy Agency (IEA) said, on 16 January, that it is "deeply concerned" about the inability of the Russian group Gazprom and Ukraine's Naftogaz to come to agreement over the resumption of gas deliveries to Europe. It states...

IMMIGRATION/HEALTH : ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS EXCLUDED FROM HEALTH CARE, SAYS NGO.
January 29, 2009... As Europe steps up its fight against illegal immigrants, Medecins du monde (MdM) has released pessimistic findings. Illegal immigrants, and to a lesser extent asylum seekers, are "on the whole excluded from health care," the NGO announced, on...

EU/CROATIA : ITALY URGES EARLY END TO CROAT-SLOVENE BORDER ROW.
January 29, 2009... Italian Foreign Affairs Minister Franco Frattini has urged the Czech EU Presidency to embark on a diplomatic offensive to facilitate an agreement between Croatia and Slovenia in their ongoing border dispute that has been hindering Zagreb's EU...

EU/UKRAINE : LEADERS TAKE STEPS TO AVOID RECURRENCE OF GAS CRISIS.
January 29, 2009... Stressing that they have learnt the lesson from the recent gas crisis, the EU and Ukraine have exchanged reassurances of their mutual commitment to deepen cooperation in the energy field. Visiting Brussels for the first time following the gas...

EU/SLOVENIA/CROATIA : LJUBLJANA CONTINUES TO BLOCK CROATIA'S ACCESSION TALKS.(Conference news)
January 29, 2009... Despite a last attempt by the French Presidency of the EU to find a compromise, Croatia's EU accession talks remain blocked by Slovenia over a bilateral border dispute. Only one chapter was opened and three provisionally closed during the...

EU/CROATIA : MEPS SAY CONFIDENT IN ZAGREB.(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... The members of the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee have welcomed progress in nearly all areas of Croatia's accession talks, expressing their confidence that "the goal of concluding negotiations in 2009, in accordance with the...

EU/WESTERN BALKANS : MEPS WANT GREATER ECONOMIC COOPERATION.(Conference news)(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... At its first session in 2009 held in Strasbourg, the European Parliament argued for deeper economic cooperation between the EU and the Western Balkans. An own-initiative report drafted by Bastiaan Belder (IND-DEM, the Netherlands), adopted by...

EU/RUSSIA : MOSCOW UPS PRESSURE ON EU MEAT EXPORTERS.
January 29, 2009... In spite of the current standoff between Ukraine and the EU on gas supplies, Moscow has not toned down its quarrels in the food sector. Since 1 January, Russia has engaged in a demonstration of force that is bound to be harmful to certain EU...

EU/FYROM : NAME DISPUTE SHOULD NOT OBSTRUCT MACEDONIA'S EU BID - MEPS.(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... Just like in the Croat-Slovene border dispute case (see separate article), the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee believes that the name row' between the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) and Greece is a bilateral...

NEW PROPOSALS TO FIGHT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION.
January 29, 2009... When the EU's home affairs ministers meet in Prague, on 15 January, Italy, Greece, Malta and Cyprus could table joint proposals to combat illegal immigration, announced the ministers from these countries, on 13 January in Rome. The fight...

AGRICULTURE : NEW RUSSIAN THREATS OVER EU EXPORTS.
January 29, 2009... European negotiators will once again, on 14 January, be meeting Sergei Dankvert, the head of Russia's veterinary services, on the sidelines of the Green Week in Berlin (Germany). Moscow, which recently stepped up health inspections on European...

EU/RUSSIA/UKRAINE : POLITICAL TIES UNAFFECTED BY GAS CRISIS, SAY MINISTERS.
January 29, 2009... The political relations between the EU and its two neighbours - Russia and Ukraine - will not be affected by the recent gas crisis, which left the majority of member states without gas supply in the middle of a harsh winter. The EU's foreign...

PRAGUE AGAINST SERBIA'S EU BID BEING HELD HOSTAGE.
January 29, 2009... Referring to the Dutch refusal to unblock the implementation of the interim trade agreement with Serbia, Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg said that Belgrade's further EU integration should not be impeded by the country's failure to...

CZECH PRESIDENCY : PRAGUE RELUCTANT TO TAKE INITIATIVE IN DIFFUSING CROAT-SLOVENE ROW.(Conference news)
January 29, 2009... Prague is determined to bring Croatia's accession talks forward during its six-month Presidency by helping to solve its border dispute with Slovenia, but believes that first the two countries have to explicitly ask for its assistance, Czech...

LATVIA : PRESIDENT ZATLERS: NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICY A PRIORITY FOR RIGA.
January 29, 2009... Obtaining the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty and strengthening the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) were the two issues highlighted by Latvian President Valdis Zatlers in his speech before the European Parliament in Strasbourg, on 13...

EU/BELARUS : PROGRESS MADE BY MINSK "ENCOURAGING" BUT NOT SUFFICIENT.
January 29, 2009... Halfway through the six-month suspension period of the visa ban against Belarusian officials, the EU says Minsk's current approach is "encouraging," but at the same time emphasises that there is still much work to be done. "Of course, we're...

EASTERN PARTNERSHIP : QUESTION MARKS HANG OVER INITIATIVE'S FINANCING.
January 29, 2009... A lot of uncertainty still surrounds the financial aspects of the European Commission's recent Eastern Partnership initiative, issued on 3 December, said Eneko Landaburu, director-general of DG Relex. Addressing members of the European...

EU/FYROM : SKOPJE: "NO EXCUSE FOR FURTHER DELAY IN EU INTEGRATION".
January 29, 2009... Bitterly disappointed with the prolonged failure to open accession negotiations with the EU, the government of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) is determined to do its utmost to overcome this year all the remaining impediments...

EU/RUSSIA : SORTING OUT UNFINISHED BUSINESS.(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... Continuity, rather than revolutionary zeal, is expected to characterise the Czech Presidency's policy towards Russia. Following a turbulent period in EU-Russia relations with eruption of the Georgia crisis in August, Prague intends to calm down...

SPAIN CALLS ON HOLLAND TO UNBLOCK SAA WITH SERBIA.
January 29, 2009... Addressing the Conference of Serbia's Ambassadors, on 11 January in Belgrade, Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos urged the Dutch government to enable the implementation of Serbia's Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with...

EASTERN PARTNERSHIP : STRUGGLING FOR A COMPROMISE.
January 29, 2009... The Czech Republic is going to switch the EU's attention from the Mediterranean to its Eastern neighbours. It intends to complete discussions between governments on the final elements of the Eastern Partnership (EP), at the March European...

EU/SERBIA : SUPPORT FOR EU INTEGRATION WANES.(Survey)(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... Support for EU integration is on the wane in Serbia, a public opinion poll has revealed. According to a survey, entitled Serbian citizens' European orientation - Trends', conducted by the Serbian European Integration Office, 61% of Serbs are...

EU/CROATIA/SLOVENIA : TUG OF WAR OVER BORDER CONTINUES.(Brief article)
January 29, 2009... Despite mounting pressure, the mixed Croatian-Slovenian commission tasked with finding a solution to the border dispute between the two countries has to date failed to come up with a viable plan. The row has been blocking Zagreb's EU accession...

EU/TURKEY : TWO NEW CHAPTERS OPENED WITH ANKARA.(European Union)
January 29, 2009... Negotiations for Turkish accession to the European Union continue to move forward, though some consider their progress very slow. The agreement reached at the Intergovernmental Conference, on 19 December in Brussels, on the opening of two new...