US State Department

Thousands of people are expected to take part in dozens of marches in cities across the globe on August 15 in support of Iran's deal with world powers over its controversial nuclear programme.

The United States said it would raise the issue of a recent Moscow visit by a senior Iranian general at the United Nations, saying it violated UN resolutions on Iran.
 

The United States said on August 11 it has intervened in a lawsuit against Palestinian authorities over attacks in Israel that killed and injured Americans, arguing that a high bond could compromise the Palestinians' financial stability.  

Most Balkan countries do not meet the "minimal required standards" in fighting human trafficking but are demonstrating substantial efforts to achieve them, said the annual report published by the US State Department on Monday.

Bulgaria remains one of the primary source countries of human trafficking in the European Union and government corruption creates an environment enabling some trafficking crimes, the US State Department has said.

The Croatia government on Thursday declared the planned construction of a liquefied natural gas - LNG - terminal on the island of Krk a "strategic investment project".

Bulgarian Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov identified Russia as posing a serious threat to security.

Mitov said this during his speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, daily Dnevnik reports.

The Bulgarian foreign minister stated that the behaviour of Russia nowadays presented a serious threat to security.

On her visit to Kosovo on Sunday, Nuland is expected to try to persuade MPs to back unpopular constitutional changes that will allow for the establishment of a special court to handle war crimes committed by the Kosovo Liberation Army, KLA, in the 199os conflict.

Nuland will meet President Atifete Jahjaga, Prime Minister Isa Mustafa and Foreign Minister Hashim Thaçi.

Iran and six major powers gave themselves until July 7 to clinch a historic nuclear deal after a deadline to end marathon talks passed as the clock struck July 1, with no breakthrough in sight.

In its new "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2014", the US State Department says that most problems in Macedonia resulted "from significant levels of corruption and from the government's failure to respect fully the rule of law".

The report notes "continuing efforts to restrict media freedom, interference in the judiciary, and selective prosecution."