SETimes.comBulgaria's Kuneva to become EC Consumer Protection Commissioner
31/10/2006
Meglena Kuneva is set to become the first Bulgarian member of the European Commission. Also in diplomacy: US envoy Frank Wisner visits Kosovo, and Croatia's Stipe Mesic opens a consular office in Bitola, Macedonia.
Bulgarian European Affairs Minister Meglena Kuneva has been selected to represent her country at the European Commission (EC). During meetings in Brussels with EC President Jose Manuel Barroso and other officials, Kuneva was asked to take up the Commission's new consumer protection portfolio. The European Parliament appears likely to approve Kuneva without any difficulty late next month.
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Romania withdrew its first nominee for European Commissioner, Varujan Vosganian, after the EU raised concerns about alleged ties to the Ceasescu-era Securitate. Vosganian denies the allegations. Second choice Leonard Orban was approved quickly and was named Commissioner for Multilingualism.
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The US embassy in Sarajevo donated more than $90,000 Friday for the restoration of the Ferhadija mosque in Banja Luka, which was destroyed during the BiH conflict, and the St. Nikola Serb Orthodox church in Trebinje. The money came from the US Ambassador's Fund for Cultural Protection.
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Frank Wisner, the US special envoy for the Kosovo status talks, visited Pristina for talks with Kosovo Albanian leaders. He said a solution for Kosovo was "close" and that the constitutional referendum in Serbia would have no impact on the UN-led process.
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Croatian President Stipe Mesic paid a three-day visit to Macedonia. He held talks with counterpart Branko Crvenkovski and formally opened a Croatian consular office in Bitola. Mesic also held an informal meeting in Skopje with Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku.
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Macedonian Defence Minister Lazar Elenovski met with his German counterpart, Franz Josef Jung, in Berlin. Jung expressed support for Macedonia's NATO and EU membership bids. The ministers also discussed ongoing defence reforms and participation in the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.
(Various sources – 15/10/06-31/10/06)