Conflict of powers in Romania still ongoing

The parliament of Romania and the administration of President Klaus Iohannis have had an exchange of reproaches and have thus showed that the dispute over the separation of powers in that country has not been solved yet. The two chambers of parliament voted a political statement accusing the Supreme Council of Magistrates and the Prosecutor General's Office of power abuse. The presidential administration has termed the statement „an alarming signal for the relations of parliament with other authorities and administrations of the state and civil society” and has vowed that the head of state will go on carrying out his constitutional duties.

Berlin-Ankara tensions remain

After Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan likened to “Nazi practice” the suspension of public events in Germany in connection with the referendum due in Turkey, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has commented that Turkey will give a worthy answer to this show of hostility. Officials in Berlin have termed these statements “irresponsible” and “unacceptable”. In a strong-worded release on the occasion European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker stated that comparing present-day Germany to Nazi Germany from the past was a disgrace.

Republic of Macedonia President Ivanov demands international denunciation of the “Albanian platform”

In a letter to the President of the European Council Donald Tusk, to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and to the presidents of the Unites States Donald Trump and of Turkey Recep Erdogan, the President of the Republic of Macedonia Gjorge Ivanov has said that the “Albanian platform” for Macedonia created abroad represents a threat to the sovereignty and independence of the country. The way in which the platform was declared and the public appearances of officials from Albania and Kosovo in connection with it, have had a negative impact on neighbor relations and have destabilized the Western Balkans, while the absence of an international denunciation, will nurture analogous ambitions in other regions of Europe with complex ethnic, religious and linguistic realities, President Ivanov argues in his letter.

US likely to revise relations with Kosovo

The US Embassy in Kosovo has warned that in case the country transformed its security force into a fully-fledged army, the US was likely to revise bilateral relations and cooperation with Kosovo. A release of the Embassy reads that the US subscribes to a gradual transformation of the Kosovo security force that should be aligned with NATO standards, the Constitution of the country and with the principles of multiethnic democracy. Observers have commented that the initiative of Pristina aimed at creating an own army contradicts Resolution 1244 of the United Nations Security Council, as well as agreements between Belgrade and Pristina achieved with the mediation of the European Union.

Thousands of Bulgarians across the world play the traditional chain dance on March 3

On the initiative of Azbukari Association and Bulgarians for Bulgaria organization thousands of Bulgarians across the world marked the country's National Day March 3 dancing a traditional chain dance. The initiative with the motto Wake up With a Chain Dance has stemmed from the idea that this traditional dance is a symbol of the ancestral chain generating positive energy for the Bulgarian spirit. Along with dozens of villages in Bulgaria, a chain dance was played on March 3 by Bulgarians in South Africa, Spain, Malta, the United Kingdom, USA, France, Crete, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Italy and Serbia. The organizers intend to continue the initiative in the future as well.

Compiled by Stoimen Pavlov

English Daniela Konstantinova