Greek island of Samothraki in state of emergency

Storms accompanied by heavy rains have flooded the Greek island of Samothraki. Firefighters and army personnel were urgently transferred to the island and a state of emergency declared. The ground floors of most of the houses, hotels, and shops were flooded. People put sandbags to stop the water, but that did not help. The medical center on the island is completely destroyed. Tourists have left Samothraki. Additional ferryboats were used to carry out the task, BNR correspondent Katya Peeva reported.

Turkey stops ferry connections to Greek islands in the Aegean

Turkey has stopped ferry links to the Greek islands. The decision was taken by the Turkish government and is expected to take effect within days. The implementation of the decision will make tourist flows from Turkey to Greece to cease, while Greek islands affected by the refugee crisis rely on revenues from Turkish tourists. This summer it was the Turkish tourist who saved the season, locals comment. These ferry connections are also used by many European tourists who, due to the close distance, manage to visit Greece for a day. The reason behind the decision of the Turkish government, according to media, is in response to the fines imposed by Greek authorities on Turkish ships for non-compliance with passenger safety requirements.

Agrokor, the largest employer in Croatia, is about to go bankrupt

Agrokor, the largest Croatian food sales company and the country's largest employer with over 60,000 workers, is about to go bankrupt. Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said the only way to solve the crisis was to find a legal and institutional framework to prevent bankruptcy. The company’s revenues reach 6.7 billion euros, which equals 15 percent of the Croatian gross domestic product. But data for September show that the debt of the giant totals 6 billion euros. The debt crisis in Agrokor has made the parliament to approve in March a law aimed at protecting the national economy in case of bankruptcy of key companies. The law allows the government to appoint a supervisor to guide the recovery process. The six banks, creditors to Agrokor have been working hard to secure new financing for the company. Its main creditors are Russian state banks Sberbank and VTB.

In referendum Slovenians back railway project costing billion euros

The largest investment project of the Slovenian government has been supported at a referendum held in the country. The railway project that is to cost one billion euros received the support of 53.5% of the voters while 46.5% were against. 20.5% of the voters used their right to vote in the referendum. According to the government, the 27-kilometer railway line linking the Adriatic port of Koper and Divaca would boost freight traffic to the only Slovenian port and improve its competitiveness. The government has received EUR 44.3 million in EU funding for the project, while neighboring Hungary said it was ready to invest around EUR 200 million as it relies on Koper for much of its cargo.

Editor: Miglena Ivanova

English: Alexander Markov