10.8.2007 by Lupo.

Kosovo’s Ceku warns of possible pullout from status talks

09/08/2007

Kosovo’s negotiators may walk out of talks with Belgrade if the province’s independence is put in doubt or its division along ethnic lines is proposed, Prime Minister Agim Ceku warned on Wednesday, ahead of the start of a the latest efforts to determine Kosovo’s final status.

(AFP, Euronews, B92 - 09/08/07; Reuters, AP, DPA, VOA, HINA, Makfax, Beta, B92, Balkan Investigative Reporting Network - 08/08/07; RFE/RL - 07/08/07)

Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku. [Getty Images]

Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku issued a stern warning on Wednesday (August 8th) that Pristina may pull out of upcoming talks with Belgrade, in the event it is asked to accept anything less than independence, or to agree to the province’s division along ethnic lines.

“Any proposal other than Kosovo’s independence is unacceptable,” he said, warning also that any offer to divide the province’s along ethnic lines could force Pristina to walk out of the negotiations.

“At any time such a proposal is tabled we will reconsider our position and our participation in this process. If we start redrawing boundaries who’s to say where it will all stop,” Ceku said after meeting with Admiral Harry Ulrich, commander of NATO’s Naples-based Joint Force Command, to discuss security issues and the process of resolving Kosovo’s status.

The new negotiations will be held under the aegis of the six-nation Contact Group, comprised of Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and the United States, which has tasked three diplomats — US envoy for Kosovo Frank Wisner, Russia’s Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko and Germany’s Wolfgang Ischinger, representing the EU — with mediating the process.

Wisner was closely involved in the more than yearlong and largely fruitless UN-led talks on Kosovo’s future that ended in March. Last week, he ruled out the province’s partition as an option.

“The Contact Group has laid down as a fundamental guiding principle … no division of Kosovo,” he told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in an interview. “We have never changed that view, we think it is a very bad idea and we will continue to oppose it.”

The new round of talks is set to kick off Friday, when the Contact Group troika will arrive in Belgrade to meet with Serbia’s leadership and then proceed with a similar mission to Pristina on Saturday.

Ahead of that trip, the mediators are meeting in London with representatives of the six nations comprising the Contact Group on Thursday to discuss aspects of the process.

“It’s an introductory meeting,” a British foreign office official has said. “The purpose is to establish a framework for how they are going to proceed, and to discuss travel plans.”

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Setimes

German Kommantar:

http://balkanforum.org/thread.php?postid=3709#post3709 

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10.8.2007 by Lupo.

Macedonia strives to boost IT literacy

09/08/2007

The government is offering free training to all those interested in learning basic computer skills. Critics, however, complain about lack of transparency and a political agenda.

By Zoran Nikolovski for Southeast European Times in Skopje -09/08/07

The number of internet users in Macedonia is rising, but high prices remain an obstacle. [Getty Images]

Macedonians interested in upgrading their computer skills can get free training under a new government programme, called “Macedonia — Country of Computer Experts”. So far, the first phase of the programme has drawn 22,534 people from different age groups and professional backgrounds. The training is held twice a week for one month. Attendees are offered lessons in Windows, Word, Excel and the internet.

“The goal of the IT course is to equip the citizens with IT basics, operational systems, office applications and the internet,” Information Minister Igor Ivanovski explains.

“I am unemployed and have basic computer literacy, but it is mostly theoretical because I can access a computer only in an internet café,” says Goran, a trainee from Skopje. About 10,000 of the programme participants are from the capital; the rest come from different locations around Macedonia.

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Setimes

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10.8.2007 by Lupo.

Serbia’s central bank not keen on lower dinar

09/08/2007

Many exporters would like to see a weaker dinar, allowing their goods to become more competitive on the European market. The government, however, is more worried about inflation.

By Georgi Mitev-Shantek for Southeast European Times in Belgrade – 09/08/07

National Bank of Serbia Governor Radovan Jelasic wants to control inflation. [Getty Images]

For years now, a fierce debate has been waged over the exchange rate of the Serbian dinar in relation to the euro. One camp wants to see a weaker dinar, allowing Serbia to export more goods and stimulate its economy. Others, worried about the prospects of inflation, want to keep rates stable. Ordinary citizens, meanwhile, would like to see the dinar appreciate, as this would help them pay off loans tied to the euro.

Those counting on the dinar’s rise had their hopes buoyed for a brief period recently. In late June, the domestic currency shot upwards, rising 2.66% in the space of ten days. While debtors and importers celebrated, exporters fretted. Analysts worried that the domestic currency could spiral out of control, damaging the already frail Serbian economy. Faced with potentially huge losses, some exchange offices put a hold on the sale of euros until the situation stabilised.

By early July, the euro reverted to its earlier level of around 81.5 dinars. Exporters and some economists, however, are not satisfied. They would like the central bank to reduce the dinar’s value further.

Bozidar Djelic, the vice president of the Serbian government, sees no need for a change in monetary policy. Rather, he says, the aim should be to find common ground between monetary and fiscal policy, allowing low inflation as well as high industrial growth.

The position of the National Bank of Serbia and its governor Radovan Jelasic — whose mandate was confirmed by the new Serbian parliament — is clear. The central bank’s principal goal is low inflation. According to the governor, if exporters wish to increase exports they should develop production, improve the quality of their products and production efficiency and should not base their hopes on exchange rate differences.

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http://setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/features/2007/08/09/feature-02

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