Member states of the Council of Europe

BELGRADE - Former Croatian president Stjepan Mesic stated Monday that relations between Croatia and Serbia are not as they should be in the best interest of both countries and the region as a whole.

The relations are still burdened by the past, and Zagreb and Belgrade will have to overcome their disagreements soon, Mesic told Belgrade-based daily Danas.

ROME - Serbia's Parliament Speaker Maja Gojkovic will participate in a two-day EU Speakers Conference that begins in Rome on Monday.

Parliament speakers will discuss new paths of growth after the economic and financial crisis in Europe, human rights and freedoms, solidarity and security, as well as the role of parliaments in the negotiations on international agreements.

BELGRADE - The two-day Conference of parliament speakers of EU member countries which will gather parliament speakers of EU member countries will begin in Rome on Monday and it will be attended by Serbian Parliament Speaker Maja Gojkovic, her cabinet announced.

Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelkova said on Saturday that the declining interest of Russian tourists towards Bulgaria could be compensated by visitors from the rest of Europe.

Russia and Ukraine represented an important, but not the sole market for Bulgarian tourism, Angelkova added in an interview for private bTV station.

MOSCOW- Serbian Defence Minister Bratislav Gasic and his Armenian counterpart Seyran Ohanyan said on Friday that there is potential for intensifying cooperation in military education and military medicine.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras stressed that Greece and Cyprus constitute a zone of stability in a volatile region during a joint media conference on Friday with visiting Cypriot President Nikos Anaastasiades.

European Parliament President Martin Schulz told Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davuto?lu on April 17 he "understands" Ankara's reaction to a vote calling the 1915 mass killing of Armenians a genocide, sources in the prime minister's office said. 

Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelkova announced on Thursday that the interest of Russian tourists towards the Bulgarian Black Sea coast has increased in the past days.

According to Angelkova, there has been a 40 % growth in the number of Russians, who have signed up for a summer holiday in Bulgaria, Darik radio reports.

The European Parliament on April 15 urged Turkey to use the centenary of Ottoman-era massacres to "recognise the Armenian genocide" and help promote reconciliation between the two peoples, infuriating Ankara.
 

BAKU - Serbia's Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said on Wednesday an opportunity for even better economic relations with Azerbaijan had opened after a Serbian delegation's visit to that country.

"I think we left a good impression," he told reporters after a two-day visit to Baku, where the Serbian delegation met with officials of the Azerbaijani government and companies.