Sat, Feb 11 2012

EC to unleash critical report on Kosovo – media

Mon, Oct 12 2009 11:14 CET

byClive Leviev-Sawyer

2887 Views 1 Comment
EC to unleash critical report on Kosovo – media

Ethnic Albanians walk near a newly-unveiled monument in Pristina, February 19 2008, after Kosovo declared independence.

Two days ahead of the official release of a European Commission report on Kosovo, media reports in Pristina, quoting a leaked draft, said that the EC would portray a negative picture troubled by corruption and political interference, while acknowledging progress in political stability, new laws and protection of ethnic minorities.
 
Kosovo, which unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in February 2008, is recognised by 22 out of 27 European Union member states.
 
For reasons including its disputed status, Kosovo was omitted from a recent EC recommendation to exempt a number of Western Balkans states, including Serbia, from Schengen visa zone requirements.
 
According to reports in Kosovo media on October 12 2009, the EC report due on October 14 would say that the bloc believed that corruption was dominant in many areas in Kosovo.
 
There was political interference in civil service appointments, in courts and the media, the draft was reported to say. Another problem was a lack of transparency in public procurement deals.
 
Freedom of speech was not fully guaranteed in Kosovo, according to the draft, as quoted in media reports.
 
Serbia was maintaining "parallel structures" in Kosovo, whose independence it vehemently rejects, encouraging ethnic Serbs in the country not to recognise Pristina’s institutions. Kosovo had no effective control over the northern part of the country, the report said.
 
 
 

  • Print
  • Send via email
  • Translate to
  • Share:

Comments

Anonymous Peggy Tue, Oct 13 2009 10:06 CET
Report Comment

Why am I not surprised?


To post comments, please, Login or Register.


Please read the The Sofia Echo forum comments policy.

Kosovo and Macedonia poised for border deal

Question remains when Skopje will establish diplomatic relations with Pristina.

Bulgaria to take part in World Court hearings on Kosovo

Public hearings at the World Court on the question on Kosovo’s independence start on December 1, with 30 countries and Kosovo scheduled to take part, the court says.

Russia pledges backing for Serbia at ICJ hearing on Kosovo

‘We will insist that international law and UN Security Council decisions be respected and any unilateral decisions running counter to the UN Charter and OSCE principles be avoided,’ foreign minister Sergei Lavrov says in Moscow.

Proposal in European Parliament to include Kosovo in Schengen visa deal

Draft proposal put to European Parliament’s legal affairs committee says that Kosovo should be included among Western Balkans countries to be exempted from Schengen visa requirements.

Kosovo will not be a problem for Spanish EU presidency – Moratinos

Spain, which takes over the rotating presidency of the EU on January 1 2010, is among the bloc’s members that does not recognise Kosovo, but says that this will not be a problem and that Madrid respects different points of view.

More in this category

Anonymous attacks Croatian presidency website

Denial of service attack the latest by hacking collective as Eastern Europe governments back away from ACTA under public pressure.

Serbia rejects reports of pressure on it to reach deal with Kosovo

Situation in northern Kosovo and EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Priština discussed at the United Nations.

Reshuffle in Romania

New prime minister-designate faces task of rehabilitating image of ruling party with cabinet of second-stringers.

Greece reaches accord on austerity demands from its lenders

Greece needs the aid package from the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund in order to avoid defaulting on $19 billion in bond payments due in March.

Greek party leaders move closer to deal on more spending cuts

Talks broke up early February 9 2012 with only one outstanding issue remaining.

© 2000-2012, Sofia Echo Media Ltd.

Web Design by RIZN

Sofia Echo Media is part of the Economedia Group.
The news and information content on this website is provided by our editorial team and is copyrighted. Any unauthorised reproduction or use of it is strictly forbidden. Reproduction of this website's content is permitted only with prior written permission from the Editor-in-Chief, should be propertly acredited and provide an active link back to our site. Comments posted by the website's visitors are independent of the editorial materials and do not represent the views of sofiaecho.com. Sofia Echo Media cannot be held responsible for the statements contained in visitor comments. The percentаge change in the shares' prices are based on the price of the last transaction of the current session compared to the price of the last transaction of the previous session. Bulgarian Stock Exchange data is not real-time, but updated every 15 minutes, and should not be used as a basis for decisions about buying or selling stock options.