[ALBSA-Info] Fwd: [kosovo-news-discuss] Balkan News Items

[Mimoza Meholli]

>From: "INFO @ BIE" <info at balkan-info.net>
>Reply-To: kosovo-news-discuss at egroups.com
>Subject: [kosovo-news-discuss] Balkan News Items
>Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2000 10:53:07 -0400
>
>Below please find news items recently reported in the international media,
>and carried on the Balkan Information Exchange web site at
>www.balkan-info.com. For the full text of these stories and more regional
>news, visit www.balkan-info.com.
>
>The Balkan Information Exchange is a news and information clearinghouse 
>that
>reflects the reporting of international and regional news agencies.
>Information on the site is written in Albanian, English, French, Greek,
>Russian and Serbian language, and is updated daily.
>
>Please send any comments to info at balkan-info.net.
>
> >>>
>
>Leaders Condemn Kosovo Violence
>(Sources:  Reuters, Associated Press (AP), and IPR Strategic Business
>Information Database)
>
>In response to a rising tide of violence against Kosovo Serbs, the
>international community and local leaders have issued damning condemnations
>of the brutal incidents while prescribing various remedies to thwart 
>further
>attacks and to promote long-term stability within Kosovo, according to
>reports.  In the past three months, Kosovo Serbs have been the frequent
>targets of violent attacks largely blamed on ethnic Albanian insurgents, 
>the
>reports said.
>
>
>U.S. Forces and Hungarian Troops in Military Exercises
>(Sources: U.S. Department of Defence (DoD), MTI news agency, Sofia)
>
>The four-day U.S.-Hungarian exercise "Lariat Response 2000" got underway in
>the region of Kecskemet and Taborfalva in central Hungary on 22 June 2000,
>MTI reported. "The exercise is designed to demonstrate NATO's commitment to
>maintaining                                                  peace in the
>region and the capability to rapidly reinforce coalition forces. It also
>exercises the military's ability to  conduct combined operations, to 
>include
>airborne assault and airland training," a DoD statement said.
>
>
>Slow Urban Registration In Kosovo Raises Concern
>(Source: BIE Staff)
>
>Officials of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe 
>(OSCE)
>have expressed their concern that rural and urban populations in Kosovo are
>not engaging in the civil registration process at the same pace.  OSCE and
>UNMIK are in charge of registering the population of Kosovo for the purpose
>of a census, to issue identity and travel documents, and to compile an
>electoral roll.
>
>
>Stability Pact Countries Affirm Progress
>(Sources: Associated Press (AP), Financial Times and Xinhua news service)
>
>Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou stressed on 7 June the importance
>of Balkan countries' assuming responsibility for the successful
>implementation of the Stability Pact, the investment vehicle for
>international donors, Xinhua reported.  Bodo Hombach, special co-ordinator
>for the pact, said a "quick start" aid package for the region was on track,
>with more than 200 projects approved for funding, the Financial Times 
>wrote.
>
>
>FAO Says Kosovo Agriculture Rebounding
>  (Source: Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO))
>
>Significant progress has been made to restore agricultural production in
>Kosovo one year after the end of the conflict, the FAO said in a statement
>on 12 June.  The organisation will begin to scale down its emergency
>assistance, one of its largest operations ever, and transition to
>rehabilitation projects, providing policy advice, information gathering and
>dissemination, and capacity building, the FAO said.
>
>
>UNMIK Chief Appeals for Participation in Elections
>  (Sources: Deutsche Presse-Agentur (DPA) and The Toronto Star)
>
>At a press conference marking the first anniversary of the arrival of
>international troops in Kosovo, UNMIK Chief Bernard Kouchner said success
>for Kosovars hinged on their registering for upcoming elections, the 
>Toronto
>Star reported.  Kouchner also called on the people of Kosovo, especially 
>the
>Serb minority, to engage in the reconstruction and democratisation of the
>province, the Toronto Star reported.
>
>
>Mass Grave Sites Discovered in Kosovo
>(Sources:  Associated Press (AP), Agence France Presse (AFP), The Daily
>Record (Scotland) and The Toronto Star)
>
>UN war crimes investigators began a second stage of mass grave site
>excavations in Kosovo that have revealed the brutal slaying of hundreds of
>mostly ethnic Albanian men, women and children, news services reported in
>late May.  Investigators have already uncovered 440 new gravesites this
>year, a number the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former 
>Yugoslavia
>(ICTY) expects to rise in the coming months, AP noted.
>
>
>IOM Starts Campaign Against Trafficking of Women
>(Source: BIE Staff)
>
>The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has announced the launch
>of an information campaign for zero tolerance in the trafficking of women
>into and out of Kosovo.  IOM has recently launched similar campaigns in
>Bulgaria and Hungary that highlight that sexual exploitation of women is a
>growing problem in Central Europe and the Balkans.
>
>
>Kosovar Boy Happy To Be Home After Life-Saving Treatment
>(Sources: The Scotsman, The Herald (Glasgow),The Mirror, Daily Record,
>Aberdeen Press and Journal)
>
>A two-year-old boy from Kosovo saved by Scottish doctors has brought
>happiness back to his village in the war-torn Yugoslav province.
>
>
>Bosnia Criticised for Slow Economic Recovery
>(Sources:  Associated Press (AP), The Financial Times and IPR Strategic
>Business Information Database citing Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
>(RFE/RL))
>
>The international community is losing patience with Bosnia's slow progress
>towards a self-sustaining economy and could put an end to aid if change
>doesn't come about soon, Bosnia's top international official Wolfgang
>Petritsch told AP in late May.
>
>
>United Nations Mission in Kosovo Marks Year of Progress and Challenges
>(Sources: United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK),
>Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and Associated
>Press (AP))
>
>On 10 June 1999 the United Nations Security Council authorised the
>Secretary-General to establish in Kosovo an interim international civilian
>administration under which the people of the war-ravaged Yugoslav province
>could enjoy substantial autonomy. The Council took its action by adopting
>Resolution 1244 after NATO suspended its air operations following the
>withdrawal of Yugoslav security forces.  The task of the United Nations
>Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) was to turn the province
>into a functioning, democratic society, and under this mandate it has 
>worked
>under a four part operational framework
>
>
>
>
>
>[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

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