Balkans

PANCEVO - The head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Michael Davenport, the Serbian Commissioner for Refugees and Migrations Vladimir Cucic and Pancevo mayor Pavle Radanov on Wednesday visited the collective refugee centre in the city and a site where social housing units will be built for refugees and displaced persons.

BELGRADE - Myriam Ferran, head of the unit for Serbia at the European Commission, voiced satisfaction on Wednesday about the pace of work on Chapter 24, which deals with justice, freedom and security, and offered the Interior Ministry (MUP) support for preparations for EU membership talks.

KRUSEVAC - Russian Ambassador to Serbia Alexander Chepurin said in Krusevac on Wednesday that he expects good cooperation with a new Serbian government.

Russia and Serbia have always had friendly relations, and what is good for Russia is good for Serbia too; the stronger Russia, the better for Serbia, the Russian ambassador said in Krusevac.

BELGRADE - Serbia needs to develop the sector of small and medium companies and the EU can help there through dialogue, in order to provide more information for Serbian managers about EU integration, the organizers of a Belgrade meeting between Serbian managers and economic officials of embassies of EU member states have said.

A railway line connecting Bulgaria and Macedonia may be launched in 2022, Macedonian Transport Minister Mile Janakieski said, Tuesday.

BELGRADE - Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic stated on Tuesday during the meeting with Austrian politician Karl von Habsburg that Serbia will never again allow itself to be drawn into any kind of conflicts.

Nikolic conferred in Belgrade with Karl von Habsburg, the grandson of the last king of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy and former MP of the European Parliament.

Leaders of Progressives and Socialists meet

BELGRADE -- Aleksandar Vučić said after meeting with Ivica Dačić that he "does not want a partisan government," but "wants to unite Serbia and enter difficult reforms."

A Serbian court on Monday placed a police spokesperson in custody for 30 days for threatening peace activists who commemorated war crimes committed by Serbs in Kosovo.

“Today all conditions have been created for the examination to continue,” said Pajazit Nushi, head of the Kosovo delegation in the dialogue on missing persons with Serbia.

Workers were preparing to destroy a building on the site under which a mass grave is believed to be located, he said.

BELGRADE - The government of future Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic must be a real team where everyone should have the same goals and work towards them, European Parliament member Doris Pack has said, expressing hope that Serbia will speed up reforms.