Priština officials and analysts do not expect the negotiations with Belgrade to begin soon, but point out that the talks will only be technical.
The public in Kosovo expects that the government will be formed first, based on the results of the December parliamentary elections which are late.
Kosovo’s new institutions will be formed in early March, Priština-based dailies reported today.
Parliamentary elections will be repeated in six Kosovo municipalities today.
Majority of the political parties’ representatives in Kosovo believe that they should stay away from the announced parliamentary elections. G17 expects a clear stand of the Government on this issue.
New Serbia (NS) and the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) will begin talks on Monday for further actions in demanding new parliamentary elections to be announced. NS Vice-President Dubravka Filipovski said that Serbia needs emergency parliamentary elections because of the difficult and unsustainable political and economic situation in the country.
A spokeswoman for the ruling Democrats (DS) denied on Wednesday that there were plans to call early parliamentary elections in the country. The opposition SNS party yesterday said they had learned the elections would be held next year.
Opposition SNS official Aleksandar VuÄić says that he has “reliable information†that early parliamentary elections would be held in 2011. The Serb Progressive Party deputy leader did not reveal the source of this claim, but said that there were “other indicators” that pointed to the fact that there would be new election before the current government’s mandate ends”.
Opposition DSS party officials say that the government’s record for the past two years has been very poor, and asked Prime Minister Mirko Cvetković to resign. They also urged early parliamentary elections in the country.
Opposition SNS deputy leader Aleksandar VuÄić said that Serbia is in a difficult economic and political situation and that new elections are the only solution. “The best and most fair thing for the government would be to announce early parliamentary elections and let the citizens decide who they will give their trust to,†VuÄić said.
Hungarian voters will cast their ballots in the second round of parliamentary elections on Sunday. Hungary’s center-right Fidesz party is looking to secure a two-thirds majority in the parliament.
Prime Minister Mirko Cvetković will meet with representatives of a part of the opposition on Monday. They announced that they would present Cvetković with more than one million signatures collected from citizens who support calling of early parliamentary elections in Serbia.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton has praised Iraqis for turning out in big numbers to vote in parliamentary elections despite threats of violence. Ashton said the solid voter turnout “had reconfirmed the commitment of the Iraqi people to a democratic country who deserved the respect from all.”
Leaders of the opposition SNS and NS parties Tomislav Nikolić and Velimir Ilić on Monday in downtown Belgrade campaigned for early elections. They were joined by opposition DSS deputy leader Nenad Popović, and stated that the three parties were united in the request for the holding of early parliamentary elections.
The opposition Serb Progressive Party (SNS) and New Serbia (NS) are actively working on forming a coalition, says a Belgrade daily. The new coalition would take part in the next parliamentary elections, Blic claims in an article published on Friday.
SNS has thus far gathered 300,000 signatures for its petition for calling new parliamentary elections. According to the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) legal advisor Nikola Selaković, the party expects to gather more than one million signatures, after which the ruling coalition will not be able to ignore the demand of the citizens for change.
Opposition SNS leader Tomislav Nikolić and his deputy Aleksandar VuÄić signed the party’s petition calling for early parliamentary elections. “Serbia is at a historical crossroads and can choose between the current, or a new, democratic government,†Nikolić said after signing the petition in Belgrade on Tuesday.
Afghanistan is to postpone its parliamentary elections by four months until September, the country’s election commission has confirmed. Elections were to take place before May 22 under the constitution but a new date of 18 September has been set.
The ad market on television news channels will cross the Rs.1,800 crore (Rs.18 billion/$390 million) mark this year, says a study.
The media lab of the Centre for Media Studies (CMS) says the the size of TV news ad market has increased 16 times in the last decade, from Rs.100 crore in 2000 to Rs.1,600 crore [...]
Opposition Serb Progressive Party (SNS) leader Tomislav Nikolić said that he will be calling for early parliamentary elections. “The right time for announcing the elections is running out for the Democratic Party (DS). I will ask for them to be held next year. The parliament is illegitimate, because it does not reflect the distribution of power on the political scene,†Nikolić told daily VeÄernje novosti.
Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) leader Vojislav Koštunica expects early elections, after which the current opposition would take power. “Great pressure from aggrieved, impoverished and disenchanted citizens will force the authorities to call early parliamentary elections, and the opposition to unite and create a new, nationally responsible government,†Koštunica told daily Novosti.
