Europe

BELGRADE - The director of the Serbian government Office for Kosovo-Metohija Marko Djuric urged Farid Zarif, the head of the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), on Monday to additionally encourage Kfor, Eulex and the Pristina authorities to ensure security to Serbs in the province.

Spokesperson of the National Liberal Party (PNL) Alina Gorghiu claims that Premier Victor Ponta, who is also running in the presidential election under the PSD-PC-UNPR banner, "defied" the Romanians in Italy and Spain and used the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Department for Romanians Everywhere in his campaign.

A trip of Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama to Serbian capital Belgrade was put off for November after Rama spoke to Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic, officials say.

The unprecedented visit was scheduled for last week, but heightened tensions over an abandoned football game prompted Belgrade and Tirana to change plans.

Bulgaria needs a functioning Parliament and a government elected by it, according to President Rosen Plevneliev.

Speaking Monday at the opening of the 10th World Meeting of Bulgarian Media at the Central Military Club in Sofia, he noted that he was impressed by the decorum and the constructive approach which had accompanied the first round of talks on forming a government.

BELGRADE - The participation of the Serbian Armed Forces in EU peacekeeping missions and maintaining the status of military neutrality contributes to getting Serbia closer to EU membership, which is one of our main foreign policy priorities, Serbian Defence Minister Bratislav Gasic said on Monday.

An EU-Southeast Europe Summit called 'On the road to stability and growth,' started on Monday In Bucharest, organised by The Economist.

The summit started with policy discussions. Opening the event were former prime minister of Italy Enrico Letta and former Greece Prime Minister George Papandreou, who underscored the important part Romania could play in the region.

BELGRADE - United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous stated on Monday that Serbian soldiers and police officers participating in international peacekeeping missions are well-known for their expertise and the UN needs that kind of competence, and Serbian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivica Dacic noted that Serbia wishes to provide an even greater contribution

BELGRADE - A commemoration was held on Monday for the Yugoslav Partisan and Red Army troops who died in the battle for Belgrade's liberation from Nazi occupation, which ended in victory on October 20, 1944, 70 years ago.

Minister for War Veteran Affairs Aleksandar Vulin and Belgrade Mayor Sinisa Mali laid wreaths at the cemetery dedicated to Belgrade's liberators.

The planned annual overhaul of unit 6 of Bulgaria's Kozloduy nuclear power plant has been completed and it has been reconnected to the energy grid.

The N-plant unit was recharged with fresh nuclear fuel.

The other 1000-MW unit of the Kozloduy NPP, unit 5, works at full capacity, according to reports of the Bulgarian National Radio.

The Bar Association of Serbia said that around 3, 000 lawyers from all over Serbia joined the protest in the capital on Monday.