Balkans

Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the Danish prime minister, appears set to become the new Secretary-General of NАТО, following a private agreement by the leaders of Britain, France and Germany to back his candidacy. In a move that would place Mr Rasmussen at the centre of the west’s drive to win the …

Madrid, – Serbian President Boris Tadic said in Madrid today that he wants to open a fresh page in relations between Serbia and the United States, adding that he was sure that he would soon be meeting with the new US president. “I am sure that I will soon be …

The president of Maldives, Muhamed Nashid, has ordered police to investigate allegations that government officials accepted a $2 million bribe to recognise Kosovo as independent, media in the Maldives and Serbia reported. The allegations were made at the beginning of March by the opposition Islamic Democratic Party.

Spanish prime minister Jose Luis Zapatero has reaffirmed that Spain will not recognise Kosovo as independent, newspapers in Kosovo and Serbia reported on March 10 2009. “Spain’s position on the unilateral declaration of Kosovo’s independence is known – it is non-recognition,” Zapatero was quoted as saying by Kosovo daily Koha …

Two years after the European Union’s last enlargement brought Bulgaria and Romania into the European bloc in 2007, the EU’s appeal in the immediate neighbourhood seems to be on the wane. Applicant and potential applicant countries, always the most enthusiastic supporters of EU integration, are becoming less so as domestic …

Climate change is already occurring and early action to manage the risks that changing climate trends pose to existing energy infrastructure in Albania may reduce vulnerability and increase the resilience of the sector as it moves forward, according to the World Bank. In the coming decades, Albania is facing the …

Croatia’s state-owned gas operator, Plinacro, has said it will invest heavily in 2009 to broaden its network and storage facilities. A four-year investment cycle is envisaged with 190 million euros being secured through the European Investment Bank.

Bucharest. A delegation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will arrive Wednesday in Bucharest. The delegation will stay in the country till March 25, Romanian media report. The major issue to be tabled for discussion is an IMF program for Romania, part of a financing package, with the participation of …

Ailing U.S. car maker Ford Motor Co. will receive 143 million euros ($232 million Canadian) in aid from the government of Romania, where the company owns an assembly plant, lawmakers said The state aid, spanning until 2012, will support production of cars and engines at the factory in Craiova, in …

Faced with stalled growth and a weakened currency, Bucharest became the latest government to ask the IMF and EU for an emergency rescue package Romania could receive about €20 billion as part of an International Monetary Fund-European Union rescue package, with negotiations due to start this week.