Dictionary of Serbian and Albanian words that do not need translation has been created

"Democracy", "tradition", "propaganda", "battery", "epidemic", "komshii" (neighbors) - these are some of the words that do not need translation from Albanian to Serbian and vice versa, writes the Albanian edition of Radio Free Europe. These and hundreds of other words without translation have been collected by students at Pristina and Belgrade universities under the project of the non-governmental organization "Integra".

"Dictionary of words that do not need translation" aims to promote cooperation between young people from Kosovo and Serbia, overcoming prejudices, getting to know national cultures and similarities.

Only those words that "are in some way characteristic of common traditions and culture" were included in the dictionary. "Such a word is 'kef'. It is used to describe the feeling of enjoyment in life that makes us happy," Maria Orlovic, a lecturer in Belgrade says.

Council of Europe criticizes attitude towards the past in the countries of former Yugoslavia

The failure to address the atrocities of war and the root causes of conflicts in former Yugoslavia continues to have devastating consequences for respect for human rights, the rule of law and social cohesion in the region. This is indicated by a report of the Council of Europe, HINA agency writes. “Time is pressing to achieve effective justice, reparations and truth for the victims”, said Dunja Mijatović, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights. “The notable backsliding of the processes to deal with the past coincides with negative human rights trends on hate speech, freedom of assembly, media freedom and civic space, and ultimately threatens hard-won peace,” Mijatović adds in the report. The main reason for the negative processes is the "lack of political will".

Romania building a new port on the Black Sea

Romania is building a new port on the Black Sea to ease the strain on the port of Constanta caused by the war in Ukraine, Digi24 TV has reported.

The port will have a area of 33,000 square meters on the shore of the Poarta Albă-Midia Năvodari Canal. According to experts, the new port is needed because of the influx of container ships and grain ships. Authorities also want to expand the port of Luminița, in order to increase transit traffic on inland waterways. The two projects cost over 40 million euros and are financed by the EU. A record 29.4 million tons of grain were exported through Constanta in the first 10 months of the year, with Ukrainian grain accounting for 40% of the cargo.

Key interest rate in Turkey reaches 40%

The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey has raised the key interest rate to 40 percent. This is the highest level under the administration of Turkish President Recep Erdogan, AFP reported. The bank raised its key interest rate by 5% in comparison to October. The institution indicates that the level of monetary policy tightening is very close to what is needed and the pace of interest rate hikes will slow down. In June, the central bank raised the key interest rate from 8.5 percent to 15 percent for the first time since 2021 and promised tighter monetary policy to control inflation. It was the first interest rate hike after Hafize Erkan headed the treasury. Previously, under pressure from Erdogan, the Bank cut interest rates and Turkish inflation for 2022 hit a 24-year record high of 85%. Now, annual inflation has fallen to 61.36 percent.

Greek tankers have stopped transporting Russian oil

Greek shipping companies Minerva Marine, Thenamaris and TMS Tankers have stopped transporting Russian oil, CNN reported. The suspension comes after US sanctions on supplies were tightened. The three companies own more than 100 tankers and were transporting oil and fuel from Russian Black Sea ports until October. Volumes were around 10 million tons per month or 2.4 million barrels per day. Minerva Marine, Thenamaris and TMS Tankers have been transporting Russian oil for decades. They continued to do so even after the Western companies went out of business. On November 16, the US imposed sanctions on 3 oil tankers under Liberian flag - "Kazan", "Ligovsky Prospekt" and "NS Century" because they were transporting Russian oil at a price above the established ceiling of 60 dollars per barrel. 20 companies from Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and North Macedonia were included in the sanctions list.

Compiled by: Ivo Ivanov

English publication: Al. Markov

Photos: RFE/RL, coe.int, gazetadenavodari.ro, REUTERS, aa.com.tr