The International Relations Committee of the British Parliament has launched its inquiry into the UK and the Balkans.

Beta is reporting this on Tuesday, citing a statement published on the parliament's website that noted the inquiry would have "a particular focus on the UK's approach to the region beyond Brexit."

The announcement noted that "since the end of the conflicts of the 1990s, the Balkans has remained a region of instability on the borders of the EU - to date, most of the UK's policy towards the region has been tied up with the EU's."

Violent Albanian criminal groups have "considerable control" over drug trafficking in Great Britain.

At the same time, Serbians and Turks "dominate high volume maritime cocaine logistics."

This is according to a BBC report, published under the headline, "Albanian gangs 'controlling' UK drug trafficking market," that cited the National Crime Agency (NCA) annual assessment document.

The President of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, said at the “Launching Westminster program for democracy in Kosovo” that Kosovo institutions should not have positions for people who are under investigation. “They should not be included in the election lists either,” Thaci said.

BELGRADE – As Belgrade and Pristina resume talks to normalize their relations, the latter’s request for its own telephone code present a problematic precedent for China and other countries across the world, Dusan Prorokovic, former state secretary in Serbia’s Ministry for Kosovo and Metohija, told Sputnik Serbia on Tuesday.

The Ambassador of the United Kingdom in Kosovo, Ruairi O’Conell is doing something that no Kosovo politician did, except during the election campaign. Today, he has set the time between 14:00 to 16:00 hours to discuss with Kosovo people on Facebook. The Embassy has invited Kosovo people not to miss the opportunity to make questions. O’Connell speaks fluent Albanian. “Don’t miss the opportunity!

Serbia and Kosovo must now redouble their efforts in the dialogue in order to reach new agreements, says for Blic, British Minister for Europe David Lidington.

In an interview for Blic, Lidington points out that at present is crucial to continue the Brussels dialogue, regardless of all the problems.

Kosovo’s Minister for European Integration, Bekim Collaku, hosted today the Ambassador of the United Kingdom in Kosovo, Ruairi O’Conell. They discussed the latest political developments and Kosovo’s European agenda.

Collaku and the British diplomat agreed that the only way to ensure Kosovo’s success in the internal plan and the international arena, is reached through the functioning of the legitimate democratic institutions elected by Kosovo citizens.

America, Germany and Britain, the core countries of the Euro-Atlantic partnership, these days with new energy are moving into a creation of a new Balkan order.

Augustin Palokaj, Brussels based correspondent of this daily, considers that there is more attentiveness this time in continental Europe about the upcoming elections in the Great Britain than ever before. This, due to the promise of the British Conservative Party for a referendum on UK’s membership at the European Union, which in theory means that this country might leave the EU. Despite the frequent irritation that they cause, writes Palokaj, no one in Europe would want them to leave the EU.

Kosovo’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency signed today in Pristina a Memorandum of Understanding in the fight against organised crime. Minister of Internal Affairs Skender Hyseni said Kosovo is strongly committed to fighting all types of crime, in particular the trans-national crime and corruption. At the same time, Stephen Bennett from the UK’s National Crime Agency said the signing of the MoU will lead to better cooperation between the countries in fighting organised crime.