Kosovo arrests five suspects in Turkish consulate attackPristina, 28 November 2016 (MIA) - Five people were arrested in Kosovo on Monday on suspicion of throwing petrol bombs at the Turkish consulate in the southern town of Prizren, Reuters reports.
Police said no one was injured and only minor damage was caused. The motive was unclear, as Turkey is a major investor in Kosovo and has been one of the biggest supporters of its independence since it seceded from Serbia in 2008.
Kosovo media reported that before the attack, a group of people torn down Turkish flags that had been put up across the town together with Albanian flags. Ethnic Turks account for 5 percent of the population in Prizren.
Kosovo and neighboring Albania on Monday celebrated a Flag Day holiday marking the 104th anniversary of Albanian independence from the Ottoman Empire.
Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj condemned the attack. "The relations between Kosovo and Turkey are excellent and will not be damaged by any vandalism or isolated act," he said in a statement.
Turkish firms run Pristina airport and an electricity distribution company, while a construction group has won contracts worth $2 billion to build sections of highway. lk/16:44
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Romania: TV Chief summoned over PM interview that didn't air
Bucharest, 28 November 2016 (MIA) - The Romanian Parliament summoned the head of the country's public television company on Monday to explain why an interview with the prime minister was not broadcast as advertised, amid criticism that it wasn't aired for political reasons, AP reports.
Gigel Stirbu, who chairs parliament's Committee for Culture, Arts and Mass Information Means, said TVR chief executive Irina Radu was invited to clarify why the interview with Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos didn't air Sunday.
The broadcaster, which is not supposed to show political bias, said the pre-recorded interview would be shown after next month's parliamentary elections, noting that Ciolos is supported by the Liberal Party.
"This is not censorship," Radu said after the hearing, responding to accusations of censorship. "If we'd have aired 10 minutes and cut 30, that would have been censorship."
Radu said station managers had "talked about showing it another time, and we don't understand why people have to ask, when are we showing it, why are we showing it, why aren't we showing it."
The broadcaster's ethics committee said it would "analyze the circumstances" which led to the interview not being broadcast.
Radu was approved as TVR's chief executive in May due to political support from the Social Democratic Party, the favorite to win a majority in the Dec. 11 vote.
Liberal Party leader Alina Gorghiu accused the station's managers of being "loyal" to the Social Democratic Party. lk/17:07
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Montenegro's parliament endorses new cabinet
Podgorica, 28 November 2016 (MIA) - Montenegro's parliament endorsed on Monday a new cabinet led by a former head of the secret police who pledged to lead the country's accession to NATO and European Union, Reuters reports.
Dusko Markovic, 58, deputy leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) is one of the most trusted allies of Milo Djukanovic, the party leader.
The DPS emerged as the single strongest party in Montenegro's 81-seat parliament after an election on Oct. 16, but it lost its majority. To form the government it secured support of parties that represent national minorities.
Forty-two deputies of the ruling coalition voted for the new cabinet. Thirty-nine opposition deputies boycotted the session in a protest over election day arrest of a group suspected of having planned to kill Djukanovic.
The state prosecutor has accused Russian nationalists of being behind the group while opposition parties had said the suspected plot was fabricated and accused Djukanovic of using the security services to help extend his quarter century of dominance over Montenegro.
"The cabinet that you will vote for today will take us to NATO," Markovic told the parliament when presenting his program.
Markovic pledged to cut an unemployment rate standing at 18 percent at the moment, to continue with big infrastructure projects and build new power production capacities.
His Finance Minister Darko Radunovic, former CEO of the Prva Banka bank, will have a difficult task to cap the rising debt now standing at 65 percent of national output.
The Adriatic republic of 620,000 people has strong economic and traditional ties with Russia, another predominantly Orthodox Christian country. But relations cooled in recent years especially after Montenegro introduced sanctions against Russia, embracing EU policies. lk/17:47
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Romania confirms H5N8 bird flu in dead swan
Bucharest, 29 November 2016 (MIA) - A dead wild swan found in southeastern Romania earlier this month was found to be infected with H5N8 bird flu that has hit several countries in Europe, the country's veterinary and food safety agency (ANSVSA) has said, Reuters reports.
Officials have imposed two areas of veterinary sanitary restrictions around the area, a 3-km protection area and a 10-km monitoring area, neither of which include commercial poultry farms.
Romania has also tightened controls of shipments of live birds and eggs from EU countries where recent bird flu outbreaks have been discovered.
"So far, based on our information, with the exception of the mentioned case, there is no suspicion that bird flu has appeared in domestic or wild birds on Romanian territory," ANSVSA said in a statement. ik/13:30
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Turkish PM says close to finalising work on constitutional reform bill
Ankara, 29 November 2016 (MIA) - Turkey's ruling AK Party is close to finalising its proposal on constitutional reform and will meet with the nationalist opposition one more time to iron out the details, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said in a speech in parliament on Tuesday, Reuters reports.
Devlet Bahceli, leader of the opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), said earlier he believed the bill - which would pave the way for the executive presidency long sought by President Tayyip Erdogan - could be sent to the constitutional commission once "one or two" issues are overcome.
After the commission stage, the bill would be put to parliament's general assembly which will vote on whether to take the issue to a referendum.
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