Following the Kosovo crisis

Three Serb members of the infamous "Pink Panther" ring of thieves were convicted Friday of Japan's biggest-ever jewel heist, which nabbed treasures including a $27-million (euro19-million) diamond necklace. A Belgrade court found the three guilty in their second trial of stealing $31.5 million worth of jewels from an upscale shop in Tokyo in March 2004. The jewels have never been found. Aleksandar Radulovic was sentenced to six years and nine months in prison and Djordje Rasovic received six years and three months, while Snezana Panajotovic got two years and ten months in jail. The two men, Rasovic and Radulovic, used force during the robbery, ... Read Full Story

Despite opposition from Serbia, NATO's commander for Southeast Europe said the alliance will cut down its force in Kosovo by some 4,500 troops in January for possible use in hotspots like Afghanistan or Iraq. Adm. Mark Fitzgerald said Wednesday NATO will keep 10,000 troops in Kosovo which proclaimed independence from Serbia last year. He said there could be further reductions. Fitzgerald said the pullout is because NATO assessed the security situation in the region as improved. "NATO looked at the security situation and said we are satisfied and we will look at further reductions depending on the situation," Fitzgerald told reporters in Belgrade. Pro-Western ... Read Full Story

The United States urged a UN court Tuesday to back Kosovo's independence as an act that brought stability to the Balkans, as Russia demanded the resumption of talks with Serbia on the territory's status. At the International Court of Justice, US legal delegation head Harold Hongju Koh insisted that Kosovo's secession last year did not contravene international law and so required no opinion from The Hague-based tribunal. The United States wants to "urge this court to leave undisturbed the independence of Kosovo," he told the panel of 15 judges, before the stand was taken by Russia, Serbia's ally and a key opponent of the ... Read Full Story

Serbian justice experts on Tuesday challenged the legality of Kosovo's secession, as the International Court of Justice opened hearings into Pristina's decision to break away in 2008. Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, arriving in The Hague where his country's delegation opened proceedings, expressed confidence that the top UN court would back Serbia's bid to hold on to its southern region. "We expect that international law will be upheld," he told AFP, repeating Belgrade's line that Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence on February 17, 2008 was simply illegal. "We trust international law." The hearings in the Netherlands will run until December 11 and include testimony ... Read Full Story

Serbian justice experts on Tuesday challenged the legality of Kosovo's secession, as the International Court of Justice opened hearings into Pristina's decision to break away in 2008. Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, arriving in The Hague where his country's delegation opened proceedings, expressed confidence that the top UN court would back Serbia's bid to hold on to its southern region. "We expect that international law will be upheld," he told AFP, repeating Belgrade's line that Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence on February 17, 2008 was simply illegal. "We trust international law." The hearings in the Netherlands will run until December 11 and include testimony ... Read Full Story