Montenegrin ambassador to EU: visa deals expected in September

14/08/2007

The EU plans to sign agreements with Western Balkan countries after the Council for Justice, Freedoms and Security meeting next month.

Visa relief and re-admission agreements will mean greater travel opportunities for people in the Western Balkans. [Getty Images]

Western Balkan countries can expect to sign re-admission and visa relief agreements with the EU in September, according to Montenegro's ambassador to Brussels, Slavica Milacic. He said the bloc wants to sign the agreements after the Council for Justice, Freedoms and Security meeting on September 18th. The deals, he said, would mark a milestone on the road towards establishing a duty-free regime among countries in the region and the EU.

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Former Croatian Foreign Minister Frane Vinko Golem died on Sunday (August 12th) after a long ailment. A member of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union party, he served as his country's top diplomat in 1990 and 1991. He was an accredited Croatian representative in Washington and an honorary citizen of Los Angeles.

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A Polish delegation, headed by Defence Minister Aleksander Szczyglo, paid a visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina's Ministry of Defence. The delegation was received by the country's assistant defence minister, Igor Crnadak, as well as other officials.

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Serbia's Foreign Ministry criticised <b>Albanian</b> President Bamir Topi for his support of Kosovo independence, calling his statements "unacceptable". Topi met with visiting Kosovo President Fatmir Sejdiu last week and said Pristina and Tirana has identical positions on the future of the province. "Such statements were the reason for the low level of relations" between Albania and Serbia, the ministry said in a telegram to Topi.

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The US State Department urged Kosovo and Serbia to co-operate with the Contact Group during the new round of talks on Kosovo's status. "This is a complicated issue … that brings strong emotions on both sides," spokesman Tom Casey said. He reiterated Washington's support for supervised independence -- as proposed by former UN envoy Martti Ahtisaari -- as the best solution for Kosovo.

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Israel's non-residential ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Amira Arnon, met with Republika Srpska Prime Minister Milorad Dodik on Friday (August 10th). It was Arnon's first visit to the country. Dodik briefed the ambassador on the political situation in BiH, the constitutional reform process, the country's EU integration bid, and the planned police overhaul. The two also discussed opportunities for economic co-operation between BiH and Israel.

(Various sources – 07/08/07-14/08/07)