LOCAL PRESS

 

Vucic: Nuclear energy required for higher growth rates (Tanjug/RTV)

 

Speaking at the first Nuclear Energy Summit, hosted by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Kingdom of Belgium in Brussels, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday the summit was very important for Serbia and the entire European continent as everyone needed more energy to achieve higher growth rates and accomplish great plans in the future. "You cannot learn a lot from Serbia on these issues because, after the breakup of the former Yugoslavia, we have not had any experiences with nuclear energy, but I believe that this summit is of the utmost importance for the future of my country as well as for the future of the entire European continent, and much more important than many meetings, gatherings and forums we have attended so far," Vucic said at the summit's first session, addressed by national leaders. "Why do I believe this is very important? We are all ready to discuss big plans, big things in the future and for the future, but we do not know how to implement them. Number one, we said we need to at least double the production of military ordnance, armament, weaponry and everything else. Then, we need to boost our growth rates," he said, noting that European growth rates were small. He said Serbia faced three problems in that regard: a lack of know-how and experts on the use of nuclear power, a lack of funding and the present mindset of the people. He said Serbia was interested in getting at least four small modular reactors (SMRs) that would substitute 1200 MW worth of power generators, but added that he did not know how the effort would be financed as it would cost 7.5-8 billion Euros, noting that Serbia needed support from leading EU states. He also said changing the mindset of the people was not simple but would be done, as well as that Serbia would adapt and change its legislative framework. Vucic also noted that, if the "terrible security situation" and wars continued, the question would arise of how these projects could be financed and how growth rates and production of military equipment would be raised.

 

Vucic: I had important discussions with Macron, Von der Leyen (Tanjug/RTV)

 

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday in Brussels he had had an important discussion about Serbia with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and a long conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron about geostrategic affairs.

Speaking to reporters after a Nuclear Energy Summit in Brussels, Vucic said he had discussed with Macron an upcoming visit to France and that he had invited the French president to come to Serbia. He said he had also spoken with Slovak PM Robert Fico, who he noted would soon visit Serbia. "(Belgian PM Alexander) De Croo is expecting a letter from the new (Serbian) PM, in which we will ask for Belgium's help with Vinca," Vucic said. He said he had raised major questions at the summit about ways to finance investments in nuclear power. "And about ways we can generate higher growth, because if you are looking for increased military production, nothing else can grow and you cannot invest in other economic sectors. There are many problems there that we need to solve together," he said. He said he had also discussed many topics with Hungarian PM Viktor Orban, but declined to elaborate.

 

Brnabic elected Serbian parliament speaker (Tanjug/RTS/RTV)

 

The Serbian parliament elected yesterday Ana Brnabic as speaker of the parliament. Out of 158 MPs, 153 voted in favour, five were against and there were no abstentions. MPs of the Serbia Against Violence and the Hope for Serbia coalitions were not present during the vote, while We, A Voice From The People - Branimir Nestorovic and We, A Voice From The People MPs were either against or not present. Sandra Bozic (SNS), Marina Ragus (SNS) Edin Djerlek (Justice and Reconciliation Party), Jovan Janjic (We, A Voice From The People - Branimir Nestorovic), Elvira Kovac (Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians) and Snezana Paunovic (Socialist Party of Serbia) were elected deputy speakers. Srdjan Smiljanic was re-elected Secretary-General of the parliament. The Serbia Against Violence and NADA coalition MPs walked out of the hall just before the vote to appoint Brnabic except for Aleksandar Jovanovic Cuta who threw toilet paper at Brnabic during the vote. Some opposition MPs banged their desks.

 

Relations between Serbia, Russia based on mutual trust, respect (Tanjug/RTV/RTS)

 

Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic met in Moscow today with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The meeting looked at the improvement of bilateral relations between the two countries, which is characterised by traditional friendship, cultural, spiritual and historical closeness of our two peoples, based on mutual trust and respect. Dacic expressed his gratitude for the Russian Federation's principled stance on preserving the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Serbia and informed Lavrov about the situation in Kosovo and Metohija. "Last year, we marked the 185th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. They are characterised by traditional friendship and culture and based on mutual trust and strategic cooperation," Dacic said. He said the personal relationship between the two presidents, Aleksandar Vucic and Vladimir Putin, had a special role in development of cooperation. "I am certain that we will maintain the bilateral relations through mutual efforts," Dacic said. He said economic relations with Russia were extremely important, in the energy sector in particular, and noted that, at the initiative of their presidents, the two countries had an energy deal in place until 2025. "We are very grateful to Russia for the support it is providing to us when it comes to our territorial integrity. It is very significant for us and I want to thank you personally for the great understanding and support in all situations where we have turned to you for help," Dacic told Lavrov. "We will discuss the situation in the Western Balkans - the policy of double standards is exactly what has led to our territorial integrity being violated," Dacic added. He thanked Moscow for requesting a UN Security Council session to mark 25 years since the beginning of the 1999 NATO aggression on Serbia. Lavrov noted that Moscow was highly appreciative of the relations with Belgrade. "We are very pleased with the progress when it comes to trade and investments," he said. Lavrov also said cooperation in the UN was especially valuable when it comes to positions the West was unwilling to hear. Dacic said on Thursday his discussions with Russian top diplomat Sergey Lavrov had addressed vital issues for Serbia, such as energy and natural gas supplies. In a press statement from Moscow, Dacic said he had discussed many bilateral affairs with Lavrov and that he had thanked the Russian FM again for his firm and friendly position on Kosovo and Metohija. "That is vital to us. It is vital to know that we have a secure vote in the (UN) Security Council that will always be against independence of Kosovo and Metohija and that will always support Serbia's territorial integrity," Dacic said. He noted that Serbia's positions on the Ukraine war, the Gaza conflict, as well as many other topics in the international arena, were well-known. "We have a series of very specific things where we expect help from Russia. Russia has initiated for Monday a Security Council session on 25 years since the bombing of Serbia," Dacic said. He said it was uncertain whether the session would be held at all because Western countries did not want it to go ahead. Dacic also said Serbia was under great pressure to impose sanctions on Russia. He said it was important to extend a natural gas deal with Russia beyond 2025.

 

Lajcak expects concrete proposals on Dinar issue form Belgrade, Pristina on 25 March (Beta)

 

The EU special envoy for the dialogue Miroslav Lajcak stated yesterday that he expected Belgrade and Pristina’s chief negotiators to come to the next meeting in Brussels with concrete proposals about the use of the Serbian dinar in Kosovo. In a Facebook post, Lajcak commented on his activities this week, reiterating that, at the meeting with Serbia and Kosovo’s negotiators, Petar Petkovic and Besnik Bislimi, next Monday (25 March), he would discuss the issues pertaining to the dialogue, including the decision of the central bank of Kosovo to abolish the dinar. “It was important to establish some facts and we agreed to continue our discussion on this issue next Monday in Brussels based on concrete and realistic proposals the Parties are expected to submit beforehand. At the same time, the meeting also showed that the implementation of Agreement on the Path to Normalization and additional ways how to formalize it will need to be addressed at the highest level in a meeting of the leaders,” he wrote in the post.

 

Two opposition coalitions seek dialogue on conditions for fair and democratic elections (Beta/Politika/RTV)

 

The opposition coalitions Serbia Against Violence and NADA called on yesterday the Serbian Prime Minister and parliament speaker to organize an “urgent dialogue” about creating “the elementary conditions for fair and democratic elections”. The statement of the Serbia Against Violence coalition reads that they and NADA, which consists of the New Democratic Party of Serbia and the Movement for the Restoration of the Kingdom of Serbia, had sent “an official request to the prime minister and speaker of the People’s Assembly of Serbia, to organize a dialogue with the parliamentary opposition.” “It is proposed in the request that the opposition delegation, which would include four representatives of the Serbia Against Violence ticket and one of the NADA coalition’s ticket, to also include representatives of the CRTA organization, and for the dialogue to be held as soon as possible, considering the urgency of the situation and the approaching elections.” If there were “no timely talks resulting with an agreement, the political crisis will quite certainly be deepened and tension will rise, which cannot be the way that anyone desires.” “In such conditions, it is also evident that the holding of elections will be hardly imaginable or possible,” the statement reads.

 

Lazovic: Talks in Bundestag focused on December elections (N1)

 

Serbian opposition MP Radomir Lazovic said in Berlin on Wednesday that his talks with German MPs focused on the reported irregularities at the mid-December elections. Lazovic, co-leader of the Green-Left front (a member of the Serbia Against Violence coalition) is on a visit to Berlin which includes meetings at the Bundestag. He told N1 that he met with Greens MPs, Foreign Ministry officials, and officials of the majority Social Democrat Party for talks on what Serbia needs to get out of the political crisis caused by election fraud. “All the talks were about ways to prevent election fraud, support democratic processes in Serbia. We also discussed the possibility of the Serbian opposition addressing the Bundestag and their (German MPs) visit to Belgrade,” he said. According to Lazovic, the Serbian opposition delegation received great support to prevent a repeat of events at the mid-December elections.

“We are glad to see that people understand that Serbia is not Aleksandar Vucic, that we have partners in the EU and that they have partners in the opposition. It seems to me that we are on the verge of a new EU and German foreign policy towards our country,” Lazovic said.

 

Serbian opposition to Austrian parliament: Election fraud must not be ignored (N1)

 

Dragana Rakic of the Serbian opposition Democratic Party told the Austrian parliament that Serbia has the right to free elections, while co-president of the opposition Together party Nebojsa Zelenovic said that there ought to be no turning of a blind eye to election fraud. Addressing the Austrian parliament, Zelenovic said that, if the election fraud were to be ignored, “all further political struggle through democratic means would be made completely pointless”. “The regime is making every effort to divert attention to other topics, to act as if they were not caught stealing and to simulate normal political life. It is up to us to do everything we can, to turn to every relevant address in order to demand responsibility and prevent election fraud in the next vote, because the regime will not voluntarily give up on fraud,” a press release quoted Zelenovic as saying. He told the Austrian MPs that there is no organized state without free elections, and that there is no normal life without an organized state. I firmly believe that the people in Serbia deserve a normal life and that they will secure it at the first free elections, he added. Democratic Party deputy leader Dragana Rakic said at the Austrian parliament that, because of the pro-regime media spins, many people in Serbia often wonder “why opposition representatives go to EU countries to talk about the election fraud in Serbia”. “The answer is a simple one, because those are also our institutions. We acknowledged those institutions as our own when we became an EU candidate country. We have the right to free elections, just as all EU citizens have that right,” said Rakic.

 

Serbian Embassy in Moscow marks anniversary of NATO bombing (RTS)

 

A commemoration to mark the 25th anniversary of the NATO aggression on Serbia was held on Wednesday evening at the Serbian Embassy in Moscow. The event saw the unveiling of a plaque in memory of the victims, titled “We Can Forgive – We Will Not Forget”, and the launch of the book “NATO Before the Court of History”. A minute’s silence was held to pay tribute to the victims of the bombing, while Serbian Ambassador Momcilo Babic said that Serbia paid a high price for its courage, RTS reported. “We are not asking for the impossible, we are a small, but a proud nation. Because of our pride we lost a third of our population in the Second World War. Serious scientists have proved that, had we not fought for freedom, there would be 20 million of us now,” said Babic. We paid a high price for protecting our interests throughout history, and new challenges yet lie ahead. “We are surrounded on all sides by NATO and EU countries. We are trying to protect our right to existence and independence, and to protect ourselves from any kind of conflict,” said Ambassador Babic.

 

State Duma of Russia adopts draft UN address, regarding the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia (RTS)

 

The State Duma of Russia adopted a draft address, regarding the 25th anniversary of the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, which will be presented at the UN General Assembly. The address calls on the West to condemn the NATO operation in Yugoslavia, to oppose attempts to change the historical truth about the tragic events of 1999 in the interest of the collective West, to take measures to call the member countries of the Alliance to international legal responsibility for aggression against Yugoslavia. The text of the address carries that the lack of international legal responsibility against NATO allowed the Neo-Nazi regime in Ukraine to come to power.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Dodik congratulates Brnabic: I am sure that she will be defending Serbia's interests (Srna)

 

RS President Milorad Dodik has congratulated Ana Brnabic on her election as Serbian parliament speaker. "I am sure that she will perform this job responsibly and that she will represent and defend the interests of Serbia," Dodik posted on X. He added that Brnabic, as a great and proven friend of RS, will always be a "dear guest" whom he knows will work devotedly "for even stronger political, economic, cultural and all other ties between the RS and Serbia".

 

Varhelyi meets Forto and Cudic (Nova BH/FTV/AJB)

 

EU Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi met with B&H Minister of Communications and Transport Edin Forto and NS’ representative in the B&H House of Representatives Sabina Cudic in Brussels on Wednesday. Varhelyi said that he was looking forward to the decision of the European Council and added that he had discussed the pending work with Forto and Cudic. Cudic said after the meeting that the goal was for B&H to strategically and readily approach the negotiation process. "At this meeting, we asked for information about the next steps that BiH must take after the opening in order to unlock access to 7% of the total funds of the Growth Plan as early as tomorrow. We are talking about over EUR 100 million for B&H and what we will definitely work on immediately is that as soon as possible let's start the screening process and the negotiation process. The earliest we could do is in June this year," she said. Forto said that the key thing, in addition to all the important steps that have been taken, will be the law on courts. Forto told Nova BH that the draft decision giving BiH the green light to open negotiations is ready with certain conditions. “Those certain conditions are something that is crucial. I would say that the situation is quite dramatic because no one knows exactly which words will be used in this conclusion and what exact conditions will still be left for us to start the process. If we get a positive, green light at Thursday’s session, it comes down to that again, and this is what Commissioner Varhelyi told us very clearly, that we still need to deliver the law on the Court or the Law on Courts. We have to deliver that, because if we get the green light, the next step will not be possible to start without it. I call on colleagues from the coalition and all parties and all of us working on this to harmonize this text as soon as possible to move forward,” Forto said. Cudic said that there are several draft conclusions related to whether the opening of negotiations will be a subject to additional conditions. Cudic stressed that the goal of the meeting was to strategically and readily approach the negotiation process. “At this meeting, we asked for information on the next steps that B&H must take after the opening”, she added.

 

Covic: How can we expect a green light from Denmark and the Netherlands when we have the High Representative who imposes laws (RTVHB)

 

On the eve of the European Council’s discussion on the possible opening of the EU negotiations with B&H, HDZ B&H leader Dragan Covic commented for RTV Herceg-Bosna on the situation in B&H, primarily the progress and perspective of B&H, saying that representatives of Croat people certainly give their unreserved support to the integration perspective of a European B&H. However, Covic warned that “there are certain friends outside, as well as internal political partners, who do not wish for the European path to occur”. Covic assessed that the problem lies in the external influence. With regard to the Southern Interconnection project, Covic insists that a new company, which would be in charge of this gas interconnection, is formed and that it is based in Mostar. In addition, Covic reminded that HDZ B&H expected that the Election Law would be amended before passing of the decision on opening the EU negotiations with B&H, and that primarily expected that the manner of election of Croat member of the B&H Presidency would be amended.

 

Dodik expects positive decision of European Council, but stresses that there will be a lot of work to be done if B&H gets the green light (RTRS)

 

The European Council will decide on opening BiH’s accession talks at its summit starting on 21 March. RTRS carries comments made by RS President Milorad Dodik and his expectations for the future of B&H’s EU path. Dodik told the press that he expects a positive decision, but stressed that there will be a lot of work to be done if B&H gets the green light, especially considering the removal of the Office of the High Representative (OHR) and the foreign judges in the Constitutional Court of B&H, which are both part of B&H’s 14 priorities. Dodik said that Europe has to be aware that if the false High Representative imposes any changes to the B&H Election Law, the RS will react in the same way that it has announced it will in the recent months, by adopting a RS election law. Dodik also touched on the actions of ‘The Troika’, and stated that they were the ones that proposed solutions at the Laktasi meeting, but are denying it now.

 

Bundestag gives green light for opening negotiations between B&H and EU (AJB)

 

B&H Ambassador to Germany Damir Arnaut stated on Wednesday that the German Federal Parliament, the Bundestag, has given consent for the European Council to open accession negotiations with B&H. "The Resolution was adopted. Bundestag gave the green light for the opening of negotiations and took an extremely important, strategic position on numerous issues of importance for B&H," said Arnaut in a post on the X platform. The report added that at the summit in Brussels on Thursday, EU leaders will decide to open negotiations with B&H and ask the European Council to draw up a negotiation framework so that these negotiations can be opened.

 

Dutch parliament adopts resolution leaving possibility for PM Rutte to vote in Brussels for decision to open negotiations with B&H (FTV)

 

FTV carries that the Dutch parliament adopted the text of the resolution which leaves the possibility for Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to vote in Brussels for the decision to open accession negotiations with B&H - with an important note: “Before the intergovernmental conference and the official opening of negotiations, B&H must fulfill certain, previously presented, conditions.” In a phone statement to FTV, B&H Ambassador to the Netherlands Almir Sahovic said: “The parliament of the Netherlands made this decision specifically based on two elements - the first element was the positive opinion of the European Commission (EC) and the recommendation of the Commission, which goes in that direction. The second element is extremely important, and that was the position of the government of the Netherlands, which it defined in an official letter addressed to the Parliament at the end of last week, that the position of the parliament goes in the direction of the recommendations of the European Commission.” Sahovic assessed that these are very good news from the Netherlands, and he added that there are 99 percent chances that the Netherlands will endorse opening the negotiations with B&H.

 

Meloni: We are ready to support opening of accession negotiations with B&H (Klix.ba)

 

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni delivered a speech before the Italian Senate on Thursday and, among other things, she also commented the EU enlargement and a negotiating status of B&H. She said that they are ready to support once again opening of accession negotiations with B&H. Meloni added: “We are convinced that this decision can lead to further and resolute progress of Sarajevo on the reform path to the EU. Furthermore, we have seen that giving the status of the candidate to B&H in December 2022 has resulted in implementation of a big number of reforms within one year than in the last ten years.” As for security of Europe, she said that security and defense are closely connected. Meloni added: “Security and defense needs of the EU are closely connected to the issue of the EU enlargement, or to put it better, a new unification of Europe, as we prefer to define it. As you know, Italy has invested a lot in this process, with special attention on the Western Balkans. We support the EU path for all candidates, the ones in east and the ones from the Western Balkans.”

 

Austrian Minister for EU Edstadler: Use positive moment and open negotiations with B&H (Nezavisne)

 

Austrian Minister for the EU and Constitution Karoline Edstadler commented the prospects of European Council approving the opening of accession negotiations with B&H. Edstadler stated that it is necessary to use the positive moment and open the accession negotiations with B&H.

 

Danish Foreign Minister Rasmussen: EU must not abandon its merit-based approach, situation in B&H is still fragile (Nezavisne)

 

Danish officials expressed skepticism regarding the possibility of opening accession negotiations between B&H and EU. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen stated that he agrees with the European Commission’s recommendation to open the negotiations. However, he underlined, the EU must not give up on the merit-based approach. “We support the Commission’s assessment for Ukraine and Moldova. B&H made a lot of progress, but there is still a lot of work left, the situation is fragile”, said Rasmussen.

 

French Embassy: B&H’s future is in EU, it is necessary to continue with reforms (Fena)

 

Upon inquiry from Fena, French Embassy to B&H stated: “We deem that B&H’s future is in the EU, which is why it is necessary to continue and intensify reforms. Decision after the recommendation of the European Commission will be reached by heads of states or governments of EU member states.”

 

Dodik insults Becirovic over Easter Assembly (Avaz)

 

RS President Milorad Dodik was asked to comment a statement of Chair of the B&H Presidency Denis Becirovic, who during the meeting with High Representative Christian Schmidt said that “Easter Assembly is absolutely unacceptable”. “All-Serb, Easter Assembly of Serbia and the RS will be a Serb document where in an acceptable, legal language it will be said what Serbs in the RS and Serbia think,” said Dodik. As for Becirovic: “He will not be invited to this Assembly. We do not invite such jerks.”

 

Becirovic replies to Dodik’s insults (Oslobodjenje)

 

Chair of B&H Presidency Denis Becirovic reacted to “scandalous and brutal insults” presented by RS President Milorad Dodik. The portal reminded that Becirovic met with High Representative Christian Schmidt and said that the announcement on holding of all-Serb, Easter Assembly of Serbia and RS is “absolutely unacceptable in a democratic and civilized world”, to which Dodik replied by saying that Becirovic “is a jerk, who will not even be invited”. Becirovic commented by saying that Dodik’s attacks represent an additional encouragement in fight for a more decent and more advanced state. “The ‘strength’ of President of B&H’s entity RS Milorad Dodik are insults, my strength are arguments and facts. Dodik affirms primitivism, I affirm politeness. He often insults people because everyone gives what they have. It is up to me to continue to work for all people in our state in a serious, responsible and persistent manner. This is the best possible response,” Becirovic said and concluded: “Long live our undefeatable homeland B&H.”

 

Milatovic’s councillors overthrowing Podgorica local govt. together with DPS (CdM)

 

Five out of the thirteen former PES councillors have announced that they will not attend the scheduled session of the Podgorica Assembly tomorrow, even though they claimed a month ago that they were not planning any re-composition of the government with the opposition, CdM has learned. In this way, there is a serious threat of a crisis of government, which will cause the blocking of numerous proposals of the current city administration headed by Olivera Injac, as well as the work of several city companies, due to the expiration of the acting term status to the current managers. Unofficially, although they claimed that they no longer wanted to be in PES after Jakov Milatovic had left that party, due to meritocracy, former councillors close to the current president of the state asked to get positions in parliamentary committees and half of the positions that according to the coalition agreement belong to PES. Such an approach was not welcomed by other coalition partners or by former colleagues from PES.

 

Szijjarto: Publicly everyone in EU is in favour of enlargement, but secretly majority is against it (Dan)

 

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijarto believes that Montenegro would not have waited 16 years to become a member of the EU if all EU members were honest and that, in addition to public praise, there were no secret reservations towards the new members. In an interview for daily Dan, Szijjarto has said that starting in July, when Hungary takes over the EU presidency, it will do everything to ensure that Montenegro closes as many chapters as possible. According to him, Hungary considers the enlargement policy one of the most important and significant EU policies. “We are absolutely in favour of enlargement because we believe that freshness, new impetus, new energy and dynamism, which the EU needs today, can only come from outside and mostly from the countries of the Western Balkans that want to develop, that are ambitious enough and that have also developed a lot in recent years”, he has pointed out. He emphasizes that the EU is unfinished business without the Western Balkans. When it comes to Montenegro, Szijjarto claims that Hungary is really sure that Montenegro is ready for accession, and the EU would also benefit from that accession. “Therefore, during the next 6 months, we will provide all the necessary support for progress. Specifically, we will convene a session of the Intergovernmental Commission between the EU and Montenegro in order to start closing chapters”, Szijjarto points out.

 

Not thousands of citizens, but only VMRO-DPMNE MPs back Siljanovska Davkova, Pendarovski's team says (MIA)

 

Gordana Siljanovska Davkova's presidential candidacy was not supported by thousands of citizens' signatures as VMRO-DPMNE had boasted but only by the signatures of some 30 VMRO-DPMNE MPs, according to the campaign team of President Stevo Pendarovski, who is running for second term in office. "Siljanovska Davkova and VMRO-DPMNE lied to tens of thousands of citizens who waited for hours to sign their names, yet their signatures, instead of supporting her candidacy, ended up in the trash," Pendarovski's team said in a press release. She was the only presidential candidate whose candidacy submitted to the State Election Commission was backed by MPs' signatures instead of citizens' signatures, the release pointed out. "Just two weeks ago, VMRO-DPMNE was boasting that Gordana Siljanovska Davkova had gathered the most citizens' signatures, citing figures of 20,000, 25,000 and higher," the release said. "But in the end, Siljanovska Davkova's candidacy was supported only by some thirty signatures by MPs from the ranks of VMRO-DPMNE," it said. In the release, Pendarovski's team also wondered why Siljanovska Davkova had made this move. "Did they lie about the total number of signatures collected?" the team asked.

 

SEC: Diaspora voters to vote only for President; not enough interest for parliamentary elections (MIA)

 

The State Election Commission has received 2954 applications from diaspora community members registering to vote in the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections. Of them, 2610 have been accepted, 342 have been rejected and two are yet to be processed. Given that the threshold for voting in the parliamentary election of 5,355 registered voters wasn't met, diaspora community members will only be able to vote for President in the state's diplomatic missions abroad. Voting for President on 24 April and for in the 8 May runoff, based on the applications, will be organized in 24 countries. Only 10 voters needed to register so a presidential vote could be organized abroad. In Germany, 578 Macedonian diaspora members registered to vote, followed by 327 in Slovenia, 241 in the USA, 182 in Switzerland, 122 in Canada, 115 in Austria, 101 in Italy, 97 in Australia, and 91 in Belgium. Only 12 voters registered in China. SEC spokeswoman Ljupka Guguchevska said last week that no matter how many diaspora members registered to vote, presidential elections would be organized. To organize voting for the parliamentary elections, however, she said at least 5,355 voters needed to register in all 52 consular missions or diplomatic offices abroad. "Also, at least 5,355 voters should vote for one candidate in order for him to be elected," Guguchevska said.

 

Rama meeting with the US Assistant Secretary (Radio Tirana)

 

The US Assistant Secretary Todd Robinson, who is in Albania, held a meeting with Prime Minister Edi Rama. In a post on Facebook, while informing about the meeting held between them, the US embassy writes that they discussed "the critical importance of strengthening the rule of law". Also, the conversation focused on advancing the justice reform. "Assistant Secretary Todd Robinson met with Prime Minister Edi Rama to highlight the strong cooperation between the United States and Albania and discussed the critical importance of strengthening the rule of law, the importance of an independent judiciary, and advancing judicial reform," the Embassy writes.

 

Robinson's meetings with Manja and Balla/American embassy: It is important to maintain pace for the Reform in Justice (Radio Tirana)

 

During his visit to Tirana, Assistant Secretary Todd Robinson met with Minister of Justice Ulsi Manja and Minister of Interior Taulant Balla to strengthen the robust partnership between the United States and Albania. The United States Embassy in Tirana released photos from the meetings, highlighting that during them, Robinson emphasized the importance of maintaining momentum for judicial reform and bolstering the rule of law. "He also discussed ongoing cooperation in judicial reform, enhancing law enforcement, and ending impunity in the fight against corruption," the U.S. embassy stated in a post on social media. Minister of Justice Ulsi Manja also expressed satisfaction with the meeting in Tirana with Assistant Secretary for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Todd Robinson. "Among friends, problems are openly discussed, but support is also provided to resolve them in the best interest of Albanian citizens. Grateful to the USA for supporting judicial reform, the rule of law, and law enforcement!" Manja writes on social media.

 

Spiropali: Boosting the strategic partnership with the USA, a priority (Radio Tirana)

 

The State Minister for Parliamentary Relations Elisa Spiropali stated yesterday that deepening cooperation and strategic partnership between Albania and the USA remains one of the government's top priorities. Spiropali attended a meeting between Prime Minister Edi Rama and Todd D. Robinson, Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). "An excellent meeting with Assistant Secretary of State for INL, Todd D. Robinson. Grateful for the partnership, close cooperation, and joint commitment to strengthening law enforcement and the success of justice reform," Spiropali expressed in a social media post. According to her, the achievements of the new justice institutions are a significant encouragement to ensure the irreversibility of justice reform's contribution to a fairer and more developed society. "The deepening of cooperation and strategic partnership between the two countries remains one of our top priorities," Spiropali was quoted as saying.

 

Contact Group for Ukraine, Peleshi: Albania remains committed to playing a leading role (Radio Tirana)

 

Albanian Minister of Defense Niko Peleshi participated on Tuesday in the meeting of the Contact Group for Ukraine (UDCG), which is composed of 50 allies and partners from all over the world. Minister Peleshi, through a post on social networks, announced that during the meeting security cooperation for Ukraine was discussed.  "Albania remains committed to playing a primary role in international efforts to restore the rule of international law and guarantee European security," said Peleshi. In the framework of military assistance and aid, Albanian Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces of Albania have so far agreed several packages of aid and military assistance.