FIAT baut eine Produktion mit den ZAZTAVA Werken in Serbien auf

3.7.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

FIAT will bereits ab naechsten Jahr 200.000 Fahrzeuge in Serbien in den Zastava Werken produzieren.

Es wirft sich die Frage auf, wo denn nun die Deutschen Investoren wie ehemals VW etc.. bleiben? Mit den kriminellen DUMM Beratern und Politischen Korruptions Banden aus dem Hause des AA, BMZ und der GTZ haben Deutsche Politische Investoren auf dem Balkan vollkommen verspielt, wie auch die Anklage gegen Siemens in Griechenland zeigt.

Fiat coming to Serbia

02/07/2008

A well-known carmaker is investing in Serbia, maybe presaging a surge of foreign investment as President Boris Tadic nominates an EU-friendly prime minister.

By Davor Konjikusic for Southeast European Times in Belgrade — 02/07/08

Fiat will create 10,000 jobs and plans to assemble complete cars in Serbia by the end of 2009. [Getty Images]

With confirmation of a pro-EU government in Belgrade expected this week, the announcement in May that the Italian automaker Fiat is coming to Serbia may foreshadow a surge in western investment.

President Boris Tadic’s nomination of Finance Minister and fellow Democrat Mirko Cvetkovic to be prime minister indicates a Serbian effort, predicted by numerous observers, to attract sceptical foreign investors and raise living standards. Long blocked by wars and international sanctions, Serbia now trails Romania and Bulgaria in per capita GDP and greenfield investments.

Fiat reached an agreement with the Serbian government before the May 11th elections about investing in Zastava, an existing auto plant, in the city of Kragujevac.

Under the deal, Fiat plans to invest around 700m euros in Zastava and acquire a 70% stake in the factory, while Serbia controls the remaining 30%. Most of the investment will come through Fiat’s partners, which plan to build new factories for auto parts. The Fiat move will create 10,000 jobs, and Fiat plans to assemble complete cars in Serbia by the end of 2009.

This is the “job of the century” for Kragujevac, a city in central Serbia, where economic transitions cost many workers their jobs.

Next year Fiat plans to produce around 200,000 cars in Serbia, and by the end of 2010 that number should grow to 300,000. Observers expect Fiat in Kragujevac to produce one A model and one B model each. These cars will debut soon on the world stage. ….

Setimes

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Solana - Wesle Clark and the KLA Organ Harvesting Atrocity

2.7.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

June 30, 2008

KLA Organ Harvesting Atrocity

Kosovo Albanian Organ Harvesting Atrocities Investigated by the Council of Europe

On Wednesday, June 25, the Council of Europe appointed Swiss senator Dick Marty to investigate charges that Kosovo Albanian terrorist KLA (UCK) were using kidnapped Kosovo-Metohija Serbs to harvest their organs for sale during and after the civil war in southern Serbian province.

The charges that Kosovo Albanians, led by the war criminals currently governing Kosovo and Metohija province — Hashim Thaci, Agim Ceku and Ramush Haradinaj — had profited from selling human organs of abducted Serbs were first brought forth in the book “The Hunt: Me and the War Criminals” by Carla Del Ponte, former chief prosecutor of the war crimes tribunal in the Hague.

Del Ponte’s book describes the plight of one group of some 300 Kosovo province Serbs, who were transported to neighboring Albania in 1999, while NATO troops were already present in the province, where they were held in camps and subjected to forced organ extractions. United States-based non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch said it has corroborated Del Ponte’s allegations.

Responding to requests by the Russian Federation, the Council of Europe’s parliamentary assembly decided that the charges merit a full investigation. Dick Marty, a Swiss lawyer who became famous for investigating CIA secret torture chambers and rendition flights through Europe, was asked by the 47-nation pan-European organization to investigate the most morbid chain of war crimes after the WWII.

Both Del Ponte and a number of Serbs have pointed to the involvement of UNMIK officials who prevented earlier investigations and averted each attempt to reach the kidnapped Serbs while they were still alive and held imprisoned by the Albanian KLA butchers in improvised camps throughout Kosovo-Metohija province, suggesting that the logistics and the scope of these atrocities went far beyond the KLA terrorists and that some of the top Western politicians and senior UNMIK leaders were involved in the harrowing series of war crimes.

In an article published yesterday, Belgrade daily offers transcript of the secretly taped conversation between Javier Solana and Wesley Clark, contents of which indicates that NATO leaders were not only aware of the ongoing monstrosity, but also involved in it.

…One Summer Evening in Swiss Alps: Wesley Clark and Javier Solana

Translation of the article and transcript of conversation published by Belgrade daily Kurir

NATO leaders Wesley Clark and Javier Solana knew that the international forces in Kosovo are dealing in trafficking of the human organs and drugs, and were most probably involved in these deals. Former NATO chief commander, American General Wesley Clark and then-NATO Secretary General Javier Solana have met on August 15, 2001, in a villa rented in Swiss Alps.

Kurir has obtained the transcript of the conversation between the two NATO leaders, which confirms many suspicions regarding the trade in human organs, as well as the drug trafficking. The trade of human organs is a subject of both Hague tribunal investigation and the investigation by the Council of Europe, recently initiated by the Russian Federation.

Kurir will publish the complete Solana-Clark conversation. That evening, two young women were also with them, to help improve the mood of the two officials. They chatted in a relaxed atmosphere, sipping cocktails.

Clark: I’ll visit Kosovo in few days…

Solana: Be careful. The narco-dealer gangs are roaming through Kosovo. There is no law, no control there… Hm, we made a big mistake when we allowed these [Albanians] to rule.

Clark: Yeah… maybe.

Solana: This is all the fault of CIA operatives… All they care about is drugs and their business…

Clark: Yes, I know how things are down there… I often go to Kosovo, mostly incognito, it’s safer that way. But, now I have to finish one business. We have to transfer a load to Fort Bragg.

Solana: Hopefully, it’s not that urgent… Are you talking about the organs?

Clark: Yes, yes…

Solana: Bondsteel is doing a good job. Schlaphcock (spelling unknown) [man in charge for the U.S. military camp security] and Kouchner [Bernard, first UNMIK head, now Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, suspected of also being involved in the organ harvesting and trade] are doing their jobs excellently…

Clark: Right. It seems it’s urgent now. There are constant meetings with General Anderson. Once I finish this, I’d drop by Serbia. What do you think, how will they receive me?

Solana: Don’t worry, they’ll be good. These ones in Belgrade are much more obedient even than those in Podgorica [Montenegro]. In Montenegro the presidents can be changed, but Milo [Djukanovic, former and current Montengro premier] is pulling all the strings, because he uses money to buy everything. Once you get to Belgrade, avoid contacts with Kostunica and his people… Relations between him and Djindjic have gone rather cold… Although, I think Djindjic is right, Kostunica is not easy for cooperation. You know, when you talk to him, he always listens very carefully, but in the end of the conversation he always sharpens things up. We could never reach the full agreement with him on anything.

Clark: How do you think they’ll react to this about the TV station [Belgrade RTS TV station that was razed during NATO aggression, in violation of the Geneva Convention, killing 16 staff members]? You know that I wrote in my book that I have personally picked the targets…

Solana: Yes, I know, I’ve seen that.

Clark: But you also know how much Clinton and his were pressing for bombardment of the Serbian television…

Solana: What we know stays between us! You mustn’t talk about that with anyone!

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Moldawien und die NATO - Russland Verbindung

2.7.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

02.07.2008 / Ausland / Seite 7Inhalt

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Moldawien schert aus

Treffen der GUAM-Gruppe: Georgien, Aserbaidschan und Ukraine auf dem Weg in die NATO. Republik Moldau prüft Annäherung an Moskau

Von Tomasz Konicz

Am Dienstag kamen in der georgischen Hafenstadt Batumi die Präsidenten und Spitzenpolitiker der prowestlichen GUAM-Gruppe zusammen. Auf dem Gipfel wurde vor allem der Aufbau einer umfassenden Kooperation besprochen. Bislang galt die Sicherheitsallianz der Länder Georgien, Ukraine, Aserbaidschan und Moldawien als eher lockeres Bündnis. Die Delegationen diskutierten erstmals auch ökonomische Fragen, wie den Ausbau der Verkehrsinfrastruktur und die energiepolitische Zusammenarbeit.

So kündigte beispielsweise der aserbaidschanische Staatschef Ilcham Alijew an, die Gasexporte Aserbaidschans nach Georgien zu intensivieren und somit die Abhängigkeit der mit Moskau zerstrittenen südkaukasischen Republik von russischen Erdgas zu mindern. GUAM habe ein »großes ökonomisches Potential«, betonte der aserbaidschanische Wirtschaftsminister Natig Alijew nach Gesprächen mit seiner georgischen Amtskollegin Ekaterina Scharaschidse, bei denen eine bessere Nutzung und Koordination der Transportkapazitäten beider Länder erörtert wurde. Zudem einigten sich die GUAM-Staaten auf einen Zusammenarbeit ihrer Grenzpolizeieinheiten ab 2009.

Das diesjährige Treffen der west­orientierten Allianz stand unter dem Motto »GUAM einigt den Osten Europas«, und deren Generalsekretär Waleri Tschetschelaschwili machte auch klar, welches »Europa« hier gemeint sei: Man suche die Nähe der Europäischen Union, erklärte Tschetschelaschwili gegenüber der Presse.

Überschattet wurde der Gipfel von moldauischen Absetzbewegungen. So sagte die Ministerpräsidentin der Republik Moldau, Zinaida Greceanii, ihre Teilnahme kurzfristig ab und ließ sich durch ihren Innenminister vertreten. In einem Interview mit der russischen Tageszeitung Kommersant deutete der moldauische Präsident Wladimir Woronin sogar eine prinzipielle, geopolitische Umorientierung Moldawiens in Richtung Moskau an. Man sei enttäuscht darüber, daß eine vom ukrainischen Odessa bis ins polnische Gdansk geplante Ölpipeline nicht über moldauisches Territorium verlaufen soll, klagte der moldauische Staatschef. »Darüber hinaus ereigneten sich im letzten Jahr sehr merkwürdige Dinge. Gespräche über die Errichtung eigener Friedenstruppen wurden eingeleitet«, warnte Woronin. »Wir haben aber bereits international anerkannte russische Friedenstruppen, wozu brauchen wir noch mehr?« fragte der moldauische Präsident in Bezug auf die russischen Militärkontingente in den abtrünnigen Regionen Abchasien und Südossetien, die sich nach blutigen Bürgerkriegen in den 1990er Jahren von Georgien abspalteten.

Diese neue moldauische Distanz könnte aber auch mit einer zunehmenden Ankopplung der GUAM-Saaten an die Nato in Zusammenhang stehen. Wie die russische Nesawissimaja Gaseta kurz vor dem Gipfel in Batumi meldete, soll bereits im Juli bei geheimen Sicherheitsberatungen ein »Nato-Beitritt Aserbaidschans zur Sprache kommen.« Damit wäre Aserbaidschan neben der Ukraine und Georgien das dritte Mitgliedsland der GUAM-Gruppe, »dessen Aufnahme in die Nato westliche Vertreter offen fordern«, kommentierte die russische Nachrichtenagentur RIA-Nowosti.

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COURT INVALIDATES DETAINEE’S “ENEMY COMBATANT” STATUS

2.7.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

COURT INVALIDATES DETAINEE’S “ENEMY COMBATANT” STATUS

A federal appeals panel found that the designation of a Chinese
detainee held in U.S. custody as an “enemy combatant” was “not valid”
because the classified evidence offered by the government was not
sufficient to sustain the charge.

In the first legal challenge to enemy combatant status, Huzaifa Parhat,
an ethnic Uighur, admitted to being an enemy of the People’s Republic of
China but denied any connection with al Qaida or the Taleban and
specifically denied that he was an enemy of the United States.

Military prosecutors argued that he qualified as an enemy combatant
because he was “affiliated” with military forces that were “associated”
with al Qaida and the Taleban.

In a straightforward but nevertheless thrilling exercise of judicial
authority, judges said that the classified evidentiary basis for that
argument could not be independently validated and was therefore
inadequate.

“We must be able to assess the reliability of that evidence ourselves,”
the judges wrote.

“The government suggests that several of the assertions in the
intelligence documents are reliable because they are made in at least
three different documents. We are not persuaded,” the court said.

Adding a literary flourish, the judges wrote that “the fact that the
government has ’said it thrice’ does not make an allegation true. See
LEWIS CARROLL, THE HUNTING OF THE SNARK 3 (1876) (’I have said it
thrice: What I tell you three times is true.’).”

Likewise, they wrote, “the government insists that the statements made
in the [classified evidentiary] documents are reliable because the
State and Defense Departments would not have put them in intelligence
documents were that not the case. This comes perilously close to
suggesting that whatever the government says must be treated as true,
thus rendering superfluous both the role of the Tribunal and the role
that Congress assigned to this court.”

In a court of law, the prosecution must prove its case and not simply
assert it, the judges explained.

“We […] reject the government’s contention that it can prevail by
submitting documents that read as if they were indictments or civil
complaints, and that simply assert as facts the elements required to
prove that a detainee falls within the definition of enemy combatant.
To do otherwise would require the courts to rubber-stamp the
government’s charges,” the ruling stated.

The court also denied a government request to block public disclosure
of certain unclassified information in the trial record, including
material marked “Law Enforcement Sensitive.”  (The new ruling is
apparently the first to cite President Bush’s memorandum on “controlled
unclassified information” that was published on May 9, 2008.)

Significantly, the court rejected the government’s attempt
“unilaterally to determine whether information is ‘protected’.”
Sealing the judicial record, the judges said, is a decision for the
court to make.

“Without an explanation tailored to the specific information at issue,
we are left with no way to determine whether it warrants protection –
other than to accept the government’s own designation. This we cannot
do.”

Instead, the government was directed to file a new motion “accompanied
by pleadings specifically explaining why protected status is required
for the information that has been marked. Opposing counsel may file a
response, and the government may file a reply, pursuant to our usual
rules.”

The classified June 20, 2008 ruling in Huzaifa Parhat v. Robert M.
Gates was redacted and approved for publication on June 30.  A copy is
available here:

http://www.fas.org/sgp/jud/parhat.pdf

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Croats Systematically Destroyed Serbian Population

26.6.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

June 25, 2008

Croats Systematically Destroyed Serbian Population

Franjo Tudjman, notorious Holocaust denier who famously declared he is “lucky his wife is neither Jewish, nor Serbian”, had flared the new wave of rabid Ustasa fervor at the start of 1990s and, together with Croatia’s current Premier Stipe Mesic, reintroduced the murderous policies from 1940s, when Croatia was allied with Hitler’s Germany.

He was never indicted by the Hague for the second genocide against Serbian population in Croatia, the one he planned and executed at the helm of the Croat state.

Galbraith: Ethnic Cleansing of Serbs was Croatia’s State Policy

Former US Ambassador to Croatia Peter Galbraith who testified before the Hague tribunal on Monday, confirmed that ethnic cleansing of Serbs from Serbian Krajina region was a deliberate systematic operation and the state policy of Croat leadership, headed by Franjo Tudjman, which led to the mass scale ethnic cleansing in two blitzkrieg operations in 1995, codenamed Storm and Flash.

As a prosecution witness in the case against Tudjman’s generals Ante Gotovina, Mladen Markaca and Ivan Cermak — accused of conducting military operations aimed at forced and permanent removal of Serbian population from the Krajina region, including killing Serbian civilians and prisoners, expulsion, deportation, plunder of Serbian property, merciless destruction of Serbian-populated towns and villages and inhumane and cruel treatment — Galbraith stressed that this was Croatia’s state policy that continued to be enforced afterwards, preventing the expelled Serbs from returning to their homes and land in Croatia.

According to Galbraith, the systematic destruction and plunder of the Serbian property during the Storm, as well as prevention of their return, through the legal and other means undertaken after the operation, took place “because Croat state leadership — Tudjman and the gang around him — wanted it to happen, and they were happy when it did happen”.

Systematic Pogrom

“Once the Serbs were gone, Tudjman didn’t want them to return”, American diplomat said, adding that Croat state enacted legal measures to prevent the return of the expelled and refugees.

“The systematic destruction of Krajina was either ordered or permitted, but in any case, this was intended by the Croat leadership. I believe this was a deliberate policy of Zagreb government,” Galbraith stressed.

He said that Croat war-time president Tudjman, during their numerous meetings before the Operation Storm, was not hiding the fact he considers Serbian population in Krajina region “a strategic threat” to Croatia. His adviser Hrvoje Sarinic called Serbian population in Croatia a “cancer on Croatia’s belly”, US diplomat noted.

Galbraith confirmed that Tudjman was saying that only “up to 10 percent of Serbs can remain in Croatia”, and that Serbian Krajina region ought to be cleansed of Serbs and populated by the diaspora Croats. Emphasizing that his goal was a nationally “homogeneous”, i.e. an ethnically clean state, Tudjman was also openly advocating “moving the population” and dividing Bosnia and Herzegovina, Galbraith revealed.

He testified that right after the military offensive on Serbian Krajina began, on August 4, 1995, the mass “torching and pillaging” of the Serbian towns and villages also started. He had personally witnessed these crimes and knows these were not merely “isolated incidents”, as Croats refer to them, but organized, massive action, planned at the very top of Croat political and military leadership.

Galbraith Regrets Lying During Milosevic’s Trial

Mass ethnic cleansing of Serbian population from Krajina in Croatia — Operation Storm — remains the biggest single act of ethnic cleansing committed on the territory of former Yugoslavia, with over 300,000 Serbs being forced to flee, while more than 14,000 Serbian civilians were killed. It was, therefore, quite convenient that US State Department’s Madeleine Albright had miraculously discovered, at the very moment Croats were “purifying” their state, that Serbs have committed a “genocide” in Srebrenica a whole month earlier, so that the focus of the world public could be successfully and instantly taken off the genocidal Croat state.

During his Hague testimony on June 23, Galbraith expressed regret he had lied in the trial against former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, claiming that there was no ethnic cleansing during Operation Storm. He said that this was a “technical explanation”, because many Serbs left the town of Knin before the savage Croat troops entered (compared to hyenas by a senior British officer who, after his peacekeeping service in Bosnia, said he “would rather find Serbs under his command, as they could be counted on to fight to the last man [while] Croats were no more dependable or courageous than hyenas”).

Elsewhere, it was noted that the US State Department representative was present the entire time during Galbraith’s testimony, sitting behind the prosecutor, with the task to oversee American diplomat’s testimony and prevent him from touching upon the subjects which involve the US role in purging Croatia of Serbs.

Recommended: Tudjman & the Croatian Ustashe Nazi genocide of Krajina Serbs in 1991 (Part 1, Part 2), by Nathan Pearlstein, Joshua Rosenberg, Max Rosenthal and Shlomo Baum (4International)

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Kosovo the most worst country in balcan

26.6.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

World Bank: fight against corruption slackens in majority of SEE countries

26/06/2008

The fight against corruption has weakened in most of the Southeast European countries, according to a new World Bank report on governance published on Tuesday.

(Dnevnik, Europe.bg, Hotnews.ro - 25/06/08; DPA, IPS, World Bank - 24/06/0

According to the report, Bulgaria ranks as the most corrupt of the EU member states. [File]

Only five of the Southeast European (SEE) countries made progress in fighting corruption in 2007, the World Bank said in a new study released on Tuesday (June 24th). Kosovo and Bulgaria are among the other seven nations that deteriorated on this front, according to the Bank’s annual World Governance Indicators (WGI) report.

The study covers 212 countries and territories, drawing on 35 different data sources. The Bank measures governance in the surveyed countries on the basis of six criteria: voice and accountability, political stability, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law and control of corruption. For each of these indicators, countries earn scores of 0 to 100 or percentile ranks.

With a rank of 25.6 for 2007, Kosovo appears to be the worst performer among the SEE nations in fighting corruption and the country with the most significant deterioration since 2006, when it received a score of 34. Bulgaria’s performance in this category also worsened. Its 53.1 rank for last year was 3.7 points lower than the one it got in 2006, making it the worst performer in the fight against corruption among EU members.

Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and Greece’s scores of 44.9 and 65.7, respectively, were both 3.2 points lower than those the previous year. Cyprus got 74.9 for 2007, down from 77.7 in 2006. Croatia (58.9) and Serbia (46.4) slipped 0.8 and 0.2 points, respectively.

Meanwhile, Albania (36.7) improved by 7.6 points. Romania (55.6) also made significant progress, gaining 7.1 points in a year. Macedonia (50.7), Montenegro (44.4) and Turkey (59.4) earned higher scores for 2007.

On the voice and accountability indicator, all SEE countries, except for BiH, Kosovo, Romania and Turkey, improved their scores.

Political stability deteriorated most in Turkey, Serbia and BiH. Cyprus (64.4), Greece (63.0) and Bulgaria (61.1) fared best on this indicator. ….

Setimes

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Gerdec blast and the US - Albanian bribery system

25.6.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

Consequences still resonate three months after Gerdec blast

23/06/2008

Although the people in Gerdec, Albania, have begun to rebuild their homes and move on, the March 15th blast in the town is still fresh in everyone’s minds. The explosion is still causing turmoil in Albanian politics.

By Manjola Hala for Southeast European Times in Tirana — 23/06/08

The blast killed 26 people, and caused 16.6m euros worth of damage. [Getty Images]

Efforts to dismantle Albania’s stockpiles of obsolete munitions took a catastrophic turn on March 15th, when a series of explosions occurred as crews were clearing out a storage depot in Gerdec, near Tirana. The explosions lasted nearly 14 hours, resulted in 26 deaths, over 300 injuries, thousands of homeless and 16.6m euros worth of damage.

Investigations into the tragedy have focused on what caused the explosion and who is responsible.

The final report of US experts, who assisted the Albanian team to investigate the causes of the accident, says that the demolition process was carried out in unsafe working conditions — the factory was very small and inappropriate for demilitarization of ammunition.

“According to estimates, the explosion was so strong that it could be compared to a nuclear explosion,” said President Bamir Topi.

Gerdec looks now like a construction site with houses being re-built and a number of tents for shelter. The exploded hill has started to show its first signs of life with sparse grass and plant regrowth.

Alongside the few newly reconstructed houses there are many others being rebuilt with funds from the government or by Gerdec inhabitants themselves.

Former Defence Minister Fatmir Mediu resigned days after the blast. [Getty Images]

“Some of the families managed to rebuild their houses very soon after the tragedy,” said Gerdec resident Agim, who is working on his house with his family and friends. “Relatives or children working abroad helped them financially. I personally borrowed the money needed for the reconstruction; I could not live anymore in a tent. As soon as I receive the financial compensation, I will repay it.”

However, officials in the Vora municipality, the entity responsible for distributing compensation and other economic assistance to the damaged families, say that the funds for reconstruction have all be distributed.

As of June 10th, the finance ministry had delivered 90% of the 13m euros allocated by the government, according to the ministry’s press office. On June 12th, the Council of Ministers issued a final decision on compensation funds, adding an additional 7.5m euros for rebuilding the business sector and for the inhabitants of Manze and Marikaj, which were also damaged in the blasts.

However, despite the compensation, most of those affected by the tragedy are upset with the government’s dealing with the situation. At the beginning of June, people sheltered at the interior ministry employees’ resort in Durres started protesting against the ministry’s decision to relocate them to rental homes.

Many families in the area have refused to relocate, despite the contamination. The UN group that visited Gerdec in late March estimated that the level of contamination near the exploded hill is high due to two missile radioactive elements. Still, many residents have set up tents near the hill, and refuse relocation.

Accommodation is not the only problem that caused dissatisfaction among people damaged by Gerdec blast. In mid May, claims regarding unfair assessment of damaged buildings caused an investigation for possible bribery cases. After questioning the 15 working groups established for assessing public and private buildings, the state prosecution decided to start investigations of four individuals and their methods of assessing the damages.

The former workers at the Gerdec army depot have gone on hunger strike. They accuse the government of not properly handling the situation, and are asking for financial compensation for the wounded and the families that suffered as a result of the blast.

Residents leave their destroyed houses in Memlisht after the weapons depot exploded. [Getty Images]

Five people have been arrested in connection with the blasts, and on Monday (June 16th), parliament lifted the immunity of former Defence Minister Fatmir Mediu based on the general prosecutor’s allegation of abuse of power. Mediu resigned days after the explosion.

The prosecution says that an investigation into the matter shows that Mediu’s “actions and inactions” broke a series of laws and procedures on security standards. They say there were illegal orders appointing Gerdec as the place for the site of the munitions demolition, and other orders to the army to transport the munitions to Gerdec that could have been the result of bribery.

Mediu denies any wrongdoing and did not comment on the parliament’s decision. “As a defense minister I respected the law [and] considered disposing of excess ammunition a national priority,” he told the parliamentary session.

Topi has also relieved Army Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Luan Hoxha from duty. Presidential spokeswoman Mimoza Kociu said that the decision followed a recommendation from Prime Minister Sali Berisha.

Seven other defense ministry officials and managers of the private company disposing of the ammunition have been arrested on charges of negligence. About 100,000 tons of excess ammunition, mostly Russian and Chinese artillery shells made in the 1960s or earlier, are stored in former army depots across Albania. The country has pledged to dispose of the ammunition by 2010, and is receiving assistance from the US, Canada and other NATO countries.

Southeast European Times correspondent Jonilda Koci contributed to this report.

This content was commissioned for SETimes.com

 

 

June 24, 2008

American Envoy Is Linked to Arms Deal Cover-Up

By ERIC SCHMITT

WASHINGTON — An American ambassador helped cover up the illegal Chinese origins of ammunition that a Pentagon contractor bought to supply Afghan security forces, according to testimony gathered by Congressional investigators.

Before testifying, from left: Mitchell Howell of the Defense Contract Management Agency; Brig. Gen. William N. Phillips; and Jeffrey P. Parsons of the Army Contracting Command.

A military attaché has told the investigators that the United States ambassador to Albania endorsed a plan by the Albanian defense minister to hide several boxes of Chinese ammunition from a visiting reporter. The ammunition was being repackaged to disguise its origins and shipped from Albania to Afghanistan by a Miami Beach arms-dealing company.

The ambassador, John L. Withers II, met with the defense minister, Fatmir Mediu, hours before a reporter for The New York Times was to visit the American contractor’s operations in Tirana, the Albanian capital, according to the testimony. The company, under an Army contract, bought the ammunition to supply Afghan security forces although American law prohibits trading in Chinese arms.

The attaché, Maj. Larry D. Harrison II of the Army, was one of the aides attending the late-night meeting, on Nov. 19, 2007. He told House investigators that Mr. Mediu asked Ambassador Withers for help, saying he was concerned that the reporter would reveal that he had been accused of profiting from selling arms. The minister said that because he had gone out of his way to help the United States, a close ally, “the U.S. owed him something,” according to Major Harrison.

Mr. Mediu ordered the commanding general of Albania’s armed forces to remove all boxes of Chinese ammunition from a site the reporter was to visit, and “the ambassador agreed that this would alleviate the suspicion of wrongdoing,” Major Harrison said, according to his testimony.

Investigators interviewed Major Harrison by telephone on June 9, and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee made excerpts of the transcript public on Monday.

At the time of the meeting, the company, AEY Inc., was under investigation for illegal arms trafficking involving Chinese ammunition.

On Friday, the president of the company, Efraim E. Diveroli, 22, and three others were charged with selling prohibited Chinese ammunition to the Pentagon that they said was made in Albania.

On March 27, The New York Times published an article that said Albanian documents showed that the Miami company had bought more than 100 million Chinese cartridges that were stored for decades in former cold war stockpiles.

Mr. Diveroli arranged to have them repacked in cardboard boxes, many of which split or decomposed after shipment to the war zones, according to the article. Different lots or types of ammunition were mixed. In some cases the ammunition was dirty, corroded or covered with a film.

The repackaging operation, carried out by an AEY subcontractor at the Rinas Airport in Tirana, has become the focus of the Congressional investigation.

According to the transcript excerpts released by the committee, Major Harrison told investigators that he did not agree with the decision to hide the boxes from the reporter, and said that he felt “very uncomfortable” during the meeting.

Major Harrison, who as the chief of the embassy’s office of defense cooperation was responsible for helping American efforts to train, equip and modernize Albania’s military, said that his suggestion to bar the reporter from visiting the Albania base was rejected.

In a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the committee’s chairman, Representative Henry A. Waxman, Democrat of California, said Monday that there were signs that embassy officials in Tirana tried to cover up the November meeting once Mr. Waxman’s staff began an investigation into the arms company. The letter said the committee would seek to interview Mr. Withers and other embassy personnel.

Attempts to reach Mr. Withers through the United States Embassy in Tirana were met with a request to refer all questions to Washington.

But a senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing criminal inquiry into AEY, said he had spoken Monday to Mr. Withers, who adamantly denied Major Harrison’s statement.

The senior official said the committee had never interviewed Mr. Withers or other top embassy personnel, and released the information on Monday to fan interest in a committee hearing on the company’s business dealings scheduled for Tuesday.

A State Department spokesman, Tom Casey, told reporters on Monday that the department was reviewing Mr. Waxman’s letter, which included Major Harrison’s statements.

“We have no information that would support the idea that U.S. officials were involved in some kind of illicit activity,” Mr. Casey said. “But obviously, again, any allegations made, certainly any questions raised, by the chairman of a major committee in Congress, is something that we will be happy to look into.”

Mr. Withers, a Foreign Service officer for 24 years, has been ambassador to Albania since July 2007. He has also served in Latvia, Nigeria, Russia and The Hague. His father, John L. Withers Sr., is a former director of the Agency for International Development.

…………………………..

nytimes

Army Awarded Contract, Unaware of Dealer’s Past

 

 

By ERIC SCHMITT

Published: June 25, 2008

WASHINGTON — When the Army last year awarded a contract worth up to nearly $300 million to a tiny Miami Beach munitions dealer to supply ammunition to Afghanistan’s security forces, it overlooked a very checkered past.

nytimes

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NATO says: Kosovo will not have a army

25.6.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

Kosovo will not have army, says de Hoop Scheffer

24/06/2008

“KFOR is here; it’s here to stay,” said NATO chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer during a visit to Pristina on Monday.

By Blerta Foniqi-Kabashi for Southeast European Times in Pristina — 24/06/08

NATO chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer (centre) and KFOR Commander General Xavier Bout de Marnhac (right) in Pristina on Monday (June 23rd). [Laura Hasani]

NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer announced on Monday (June 23rd) in Pristina that the new Kosovo Security Force, rather than being an army, will have “specific duties”.

“NATO will lead the transformation of the current Kosovo Protection Corps and the creation of the Kosovo Security Force, which will have 2,500 members and some 800 reserve members with specific duties,” said de Hoop Scheffer at a press conference in Pristina after meeting with President Fatmir Sejdiu, Prime Minister Hashim Thaci and Parliament Speaker Jakup Krasniqi.

De Hoop Scheffer explained that the personnel decision came from NATO. “I believe that we will have a multiethnic force under the mandate of KFOR,” he predicted.

He noted that if the situation became fragile, NATO would reinforce its mission in Kosovo. He described the task of the 16,000-strong KFOR as ensuring peace and security for both the majority and minority communities……

 http://setimes.com/

Der Kosovo wird keine Armee haben, sagt der NATO General Sekretaer

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Es gibt immer noch keinen Detail Bebauungs Plan in Durres und der Weltbank Master Plan

22.6.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

Es gibt aber immer noch keinen Detail Plan der Stadt Durres

Periferia e qytetit, pa plan rregullues

22/06/2008 - 12:33
• Artur Korriku

DURRES -Për pjesën më të madhe të zonave periferike të Durrësit ende nuk ka një plan rregullues, ndërsa ndërtimet pa leje e mbeturinat kanë mbuluar qindra hektarë tokë. Më problematike janë territori tek stacioni i trenit Plazh, hyrja e qytetit, zona e Plepave tek mbikalimi, një pjesë e Shkozetit, sheshi para terminalit të trageteve, pjesa përgjatë bregdetit të Currilave si dhe përgjatë rrethimit të portit detar. Në bashki thonë se e ardhmja e këtyre territoreve do të zgjidhet pasi të përfundojë studimi urbanistik i qytetit të Durrësit, përkatësisht në vitin 2009.
HYRJA E QYTETIT
Dy janë problemet kryesore të saj, subjektet të cilat prej vitesh tregtojnë materiale ndërtimi ngjitur me mbikalimin si dhe dhjetëra ndërtime pa leje bri rrugës. Deri tani askush nuk ka vënë dorë, si për bllokimin e tregtimit të paligjshëm në këto territore në këtë pjesë të qytetit, ashtu dhe për prishjen e ndërtimeve pa leje
PLAZHI I SHKOZETIT
Zona e Shkozetit i ngjan një zone rurale të lënë pas dore. Ajo është e mbushur me dhjetëra vagonë treni të dalë jashtë përdorimit si dhe shumë baraka e ndërtime kaotike të të ardhurve prej zonave të ndryshme të vendit. Në Shkozet problem është gropa e madhe rrëzë kodrës së Rrashbullit, me një sipërfaqe 5 hektarë, e cila është transformuar në një vend ku depozitohen mbetjet urbane. Zyrtarisht nuk jepet asnjë zgjidhje për urbanizimin e saj.
TERMINALI
I TRAGETEVE
Ai është mbushur me objekte rrethanore të ngritura nga tregtarët ambulantë. Më tej, pa kurrfarë plani janë ndërtuar 2 pallate, të cilat kanë bllokuar një sipërfaqe të madhe toke që dikur ishte menduar të transformohej në rrugë. Mendohet se terminali i ri i trageteve, i cili është në proces ndërtimi, do të ndërhyjë në këtë territor për të mundësuar lidhjen e stacionit hekurudhor me sheshin e trageteve, sikurse e parashikon projekti, duke eliminuar një pjesë të barakave. Pjesa përgjatë rrethimit të Portit në vartësi të Ministrisë së Ekonomisë, është kthyer në një geto banimi.
PLEPAT
Janë disa dhjetëra ndërtime pa leje të cilat shërbejnë si lokale tregtimi që janë ndërtuar përgjatë murit të ish-kampit të fëmijëve, pranë mbikalimit dhe përgjatë rrugës që të shpie në Shkallnuer. Ndërkohë, edhe aksi që lidh Plepat me rrugën e Kavajës paraqitet mjaft i dëmtuar. Policia ndërtimore ende nuk ka ndonjë urdhër për fatin e këtyre ndërtimeve pa leje.
CURRILAT
Përpara disa ditëve, policia bashkiake dërgoi njoftime për prishjen e objekteve tregtare të ndërtuara pa leje përgjatë bregdetit të Currilave. Por afatet kanë kaluar dhe nuk është ndërhyrë. Në këtë mënyrë, zonat periferike të Durrësit janë “harruar”, duke sjellë probleme të mprehta për infrastrukturën e komunitetin

http://www.balkanweb.com/gazetav4/index.php?id=38852

Neuer Master Plan der Weltbank mit absoluter Priorität umd die letzten natürlichen Strände in der Currila und bei Durres zu erhalten.

Es wird ein Tender ausgeschrieben u.a. für die Aufforstung, Abreissen von illegalen Bauten, Strasse und Öffentlichen Parkplätzen etc.. von der Weltbank wie es in dem heutigem Artikel steht. Das muß dann Alles fertig sein, bis 2009, wenn das Alb. Sport Boot Verbot wegfällt.

BB, masterplan për pjesën e virgjër të plazhit

11/11/2007 - 09:26
• Artur Korriku

DURRES -Banka Botërore do të hartojë masterplanin e zhvillimit urban të Durrësit, duke përfshirë edhe zonat jashtë vijës së verdhë. Vetëm pas këtij studimi do të mund të rehabilitohet edhe plazhi i Kallmit. Kjo zonë deri më tani mund të konsiderohet e virgjër, për shkak se rruga që të çon është e keqe dhe nuk ka investime. Por ky bregdet po shihet tashmë si një nga prioritetet e projekteve të BB-së për t’i dhënë një dorë më shumë turizmit durrsak. Megjithatë, nga përllogaritjet dhe mundësitë reale të këtij projekti, pritet që të nisë jo më shpejt se viti 2009, ku do të zhvillohet edhe një tender ndërkombëtar.
TURIZMI
Urbanistët e Durrësit që të gjithë janë në një mendje se zhvillimi i turizimit ditor në qytet është vënia në punë e plazhit të Kallimit. Kjo është një zonë e virgjër, e cila ndodhet fill pas plazhit të Currilave. Mungesa e infrastrukturës e ka lënë këtë pjesë të bregdetit ashtu sikurse e ka krijuar natyra. Në Durrës thuhet se mjafton që të ndërtohet rruga e Kallmit, e cila lidh Currilat me Spitallën dhe më pas plazhi është gati.
Edhe në planet e bashkisë së Durrësit ky bregdet shihet si prioritet zhvillimi turistik. Nënkryetari i Bashkisë, Ardi Çela sqaron se “përpara se të nisim kërkesat tona për hartimin e projektit të Kallmit dhe të sigurojmë fondet e mjaftueshme për realizimin e projektit, duhet të presim studimin e masterplanit i cili është marrë përsipër nga BB-ja”.
TENDERI

Weltbank Master Plan fuer Durres 

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Mazedonien: Journalist ermordete Frauen

21.6.2008 by CrniLabudovi.

Mazedonien: Journalist ermordete Frauen

Dann berichtete er über die Mordfälle. Zwei Männer wurden zu lebenslanger Haft verurteilt. Eine DNA-Analyse überführte den wahren Täter.

Die mazedonische Polizei überführte den Mörder mit DNA-Analyse.
Die mazedonische Polizei hat einen Journalisten unter dem Verdacht des Doppelmordes festgenommen. Der Mann soll mindestens zwei ältere Frauen vergewaltigt und ermordet haben, berichteten die Medien in der Hauptstadt Skopje am Freitag. Der Journalist soll später über die Ermittlungen und Prozesse gegen die angeblichen Täter in der Tageszeitung “Utrinski vesnik” berichtet haben.

Im Prozess um einen der Mordfälle wurden vor drei Jahren zwei Männer zu lebenslanger Haft verurteilt. Unlängst hat aber eine DNA-Analyse ergeben, dass am Tatort Spuren des Journalisten gefunden wurden. Die Polizei vermutet, dass der Pressemann auch eine dritte Frau ermordet haben könnte.

http://kurier.at/nachrichten/169882.php

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