Gakpo was one of the best Dutch football players at the World Cup in Qatar. Romano claims that Gakpo wanted to move to Manchester United even in the summer transfer window, but the two clubs did not agree on the amount of compensation for the Dutch footballer.

The Dutch striker is 23 years old, and in the meantime he has received offers from numerous European clubswho currently have better results than Manchester United, but the PSV player does not want to change his mind.

Romano believes that the Old Trafford club will have to allocate between 55 and 60 million euros for this transfer.

Gakpo played 159 games for PSV and scored 55 goals with 50 assists.

He played 14 matches for the Dutch national team, and scored six times.

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails

Sign up to our free breaking news emails

Kosovo’s prime minister on Thursday formally tabled his country’s application to be granted candidacy status for membership in the European Union, a first step in what looks set to be a very long path to eventual membership.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti submitted the application to Czech Minister for European Affairs Mikulas Bek, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency.

“The European Union is a destination we aim for and its is the destiny we embrace,” Kurti said in Prague.

For Kosovo, the latest country in the Western Balkans to apply to join the 27-member bloc, a place in the EU is a distant goal.

It is locked in a long-lasting dispute with another EU hopeful, neighboring Serbia, which has already called on the bloc to cancel the accession process. Without sorting out their differences, full membership can hardly become reality for either country.

Five EU countries — Spain, Romania, Slovakia, Greece and Cyprus — have not recognized Kosovo as a nation at all for reasons that, in the cases of some of the five, include fear that recognition might encourage separatist drives in their own countries.

Kosovo is a mainly ethnic Albanian territory that declared independence from Serbia in 2008. The Serbian government has refused to recognize Kosovo’s statehood and still considers it part of Serbia, even though it has no formal control there.

Kosovo was part of Serbia until a bloody Serb crackdown on an armed insurrection by ethnic Albanian separatists prompted a NATO bombing campaign in 1999 that forced the Serbs out. Serbia’s military and police killed more than 10,000 ethnic Albanians and about one million were forced to flee, mostly to neighboring Albania and North Macedonia.

Serbia reacted with anger to Kosovo’s EU application and officials said they will ask the five EU states which have not recognized Kosovo, plus Hungary, to block the initiative in Brussels.

“I don’t know which criteria applies to decide whether (a territory) is a state or not,” Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic said Thursday of Kosovo’s EU application. “We will have to fight as hard as possible to protect our state and national interests.”

Kosovo and Serbia are among six Western Balkan nations seeking EU membership, together with Albania, Bosnia, Montenegro and North Macedonia.

Expansion of the EU has stalled in recent years. The bloc last admitted a new member — Croatia, which is also part of the Balkans — in 2013.

Since Russia attacked Ukraine in late February, EU officials have repeated that stepping up the bloc’s engagement with the six nations was more crucial than ever to maintaining Europe’s security.

___

Jovana Gec contributed from Belgrade, Serbia.

To the Russian attack on Ukraine, the USA and its allies in the West and East, members of NATO and the Quadrilateral Forum (with the exception of Turkey, that is, India), reacted relatively united with harsh sanctions, but the countries outside those military-political blocs remained restrained in relation to at Washington’s call to isolate Russia economically and politically.

The media in East Asia report that the populous countries of Southeast Asia, Vietnam, Myanmar and Thailand want to continue economic cooperation with Moscow despite pressure from the West in order to curb inflation and speed up recovery from the difficulties caused by the covid pandemic.

Vietnam traditionally has excellent relations with Moscow, not only because of its political and material support during the country’s brutal war against the US on the Indochinese peninsula, but also because of the fact that Hanoi, due to territorial disputes and many historical frictions with neighboring China, needs a powerful and reliable military-political partner (a member of the UN Security Council) such as Russia.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited Hanoi in July, where the two sides agreed to intensify economic relations. The Vietnamese government will import large quantities of wheat from Russia.

Vietnam exports machinery, clothing, fish and fruit to Russia, and, in addition to wheat, imports corn, oil, gas, metals and meat.

In the same month, General Min Aung Hlaig, the leader of Myanmar’s military government, visited Moscow and signed an agreement by which the country, politically and economically isolated by the West and the US’s Asian allies, began purchasing Russian oil. At that time, he also met with Russian officials from the nuclear and dedicated industry.

At the beginning of this month, the Myanmar leader also participated in the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, securing new quantities of diesel fuel, which his country will pay for in rubles. It is important for the authorities in Myanmar to reduce inflation by importing Russian oil, which is sold at lower prices than those prevailing on the world stock markets, and thus alleviate the dissatisfaction of the population in conditions of political instability and internal conflicts.

Analysts in Southeast Asia believe that the military government in Myanmar is interested in using air superiority to tame the armed rebellion of the political opposition and the uprising of several ethnic minorities, and actually reduce political and logistical dependence on the powerful neighbor China by purchasing Russian military equipment.

Myanmar already owns Russian “MiG-29” and “JAK-130” aircraft, and it is believed that it recently bought six “SU-30” bomber fighters, whose delivery has allegedly already begun.

General Min’s meeting with Rosatom representatives in July could also mean that the former British colony, which has 57 million inhabitants, plans to build a nuclear power plant.

And a traditional American ally for continued economic cooperation with Moscow

The tourism organization of Thailand, a capitalist country that for decades in a communist environment leaned militarily towards Washington, announced that from October, the previously frozen flights of the Russian airline “Aeroflot” to the southern island of Phuket, popular among foreign tourists, will be re-established.

This is especially important for the Buddhist kingdom of 70 million inhabitants, because in January and February of this year, before the start of hostilities in Ukraine, the Russians were the most numerous foreign tourists – Thailand now wants to host as many as one million Russian citizens by the end of this year.

Also, thanks to the recent comprehensive agreement, the total economic exchange between Bangkok and Moscow was expected to reach ten billion dollars next year, which would be four times more than in 2021 and another target that the military authorities in Bangkok seem to be suffering criticism of the West for lack of democracy, they do not want to give up.

By the way, Thailand is one of the world’s largest vehicle manufacturers, and exports cars, trucks, tires and parts to Russia. Food, such as fruit and rice, is another important item in Thailand’s exports, while the sprawling Southeast Asian country mainly sources crude oil, coal, fertilizers and metals from Russia.

It should also be noted that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ASEAN did not collectively condemn Russia’s intervention in Ukraine and that of the ten member countries, only the city-state of Singapore introduced sanctions against Moscow.

Vjosa Osmani stated that the moratorium is over. “We are working with our American partners on the plan for recognition and admission to international organizations. I think we cannot succeed in international organizations without close coordination with partners,” Osmanijeva added.

“When it comes to regional organizations and those in Europe, we think that Germany can take the lead. We do not want to go alone. We do not want to fail,” Osmani said, as reported by the media in Pristina.

According to her, Pristina will apply when it agrees on the plan with European and American partners.

Albania on September 15, 1990 requested full membership in the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe, CSCE, today OSCE.

In August 1975, 35 European countries, including Canada and the United States, gathered in Helsinki, Finland, with the aim of easing East-West tensions. In conclusion, after several days of debate, the participants signed what is known as the Helsinki Declaration.

It was on this document that Albania refused to sign, where one of the main points of the Helsinki Declaration is “respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms, including freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief.”

Official Tirana would need 15 years to understand and accept the necessity of these rights.

world
August 19, 2021 – 23:14

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday that an armed resistance against the Taliban, which includes forces trained by SAS (Special Forces of the British Army) in Afghanistan, is forming in the Panjshir Valley.

The Russian official also confirmed that the resistance was led by ousted Vice President Amrullah Saleh and Ahmad Massoud, the son of a prominent anti-Taliban fighter.

Reports claim that among the fighters led in Panjshir are members of the Afghan special forces trained by SAS, which are believed to be the best of the best the Afghan army has to offer.

“The Taliban do not control the entire territory of Afghanistan,” Lavrov told reporters at a news conference in Moscow after meeting with his Libyan counterpart.

The candidate for Mayor of Prishtina, Uran Ismaili, has reacted regarding the decision of the Municipality of Prishtina to proceed with the voting of the City Development Plan for the next 8 years.

Ismaili said that this can not be done without involving the citizens and called on all candidates for Mayor of Pristina to take a stand against the approval of the Development Plan two months before the elections.

According to him, plans for the future should be made by the next government that will be elected by the citizens, and not by the current government.

His full reaction:

Prishtina that we have today and the illegal constructions “with permission” are the result of the Municipal Development Plan approved in 2013, a few months before the elections. The same is being attempted now: voting on the Municipal Development Plan just two months before the election. This can not be done without involving the citizens of Pristina. This cannot be done now.

The plan for Prishtina is a document that determines the development of the city for the next 8 years. This document defines the construction of nurseries, roads, ambulances, parks and large residential buildings, but in fact the focus is on land, builders, interest groups and bargains on property coefficients.

It is unacceptable for this to be done without long, comprehensive and genuine public discussion. So today I appeal to:

1. The current administration of the Municipality of Prishtina to stop the finalization of the MDP.

2. All candidates for Mayor of Prishtina to take a stand against the approval of the Development Plan two months before the elections.

3. I invite all assembly members not to approve such an important plan two months before the elections.

This request of mine should be a request of each of us who want the best for Prishtina. Plans for the future should be made by the next government that will be elected by the citizens, not by the current government.

Ambassadors of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) spoke on the occasion of yesterday’s session of the National Assembly of the Republika Srpska, which adopted the conclusion that the decision to ban genocide denial does not apply.

“Rhetoric and actions that undermine the functioning of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, including boycotting state-level institutions and blocking vital decisions, destabilize the country and run counter to the Dayton Peace Accords. Such moves do not serve Bosnia and Herzegovina’s interests and hamper European integration and progress in 14 key priority “, it is stated in the statement of the ambassador of the Peace Implementation Council, reports Kliks.

The statement also states that “revisionism, glorification of convicted war criminals and denial of well-documented and established facts about war events, including genocide, are unacceptable.”

The statement estimates that this is in contradiction with the basic European values ​​and that it undermines the stability of the country and the well-being and prosperity of the citizens of BiH.

Ambassadors of the PIC Steering Board call on the authorities to “refrain from destabilizing behavior”.

They call on all political leaders in BiH to focus on “supporting peace, stability and prosperity for the citizens of this country and promoting reconciliation, built on mutual recognition, empathy and respect for all victims,” ​​the PIC said.

The ambassador also emphasized his “continuous support for the authority and mandate of the High Representative” and his role until, as they say, the goals and conditions for BiH’s exit from the regime of international supervision are met.

Russia refused to join the statement

The Embassy of the Russian Federation in BiH announced that it refused to join the statement of the ambassador and stated the reasons for such a move, RTRS reports.

The Russian Embassy points out that High Representative Valentin Inzko ended his term on May 27 and that he did not have any authority to introduce amendments to the Criminal Code.

The statement states that Russia has always opposed the use of “Bonn powers”, whose even the broadest interpretation does not give it the right to interfere in the activities of the legislative power.

The embassy also reminds that the decision of the National Assembly was made by a legally elected democratic body of government.

“It turns out that our partners consider BiH a negligent student who fails to pass ‘exams’ and get rid of international supervision. For more than a quarter of a century, a sovereign state that has held the position of a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council must ‘repeat the year’ … “For these reasons, we consider the Office of the High Representative to be a brake on BiH’s development path and insist on its unconditional closure. This is the case when the advantages have long since turned into irreparable shortcomings. Therefore – it must be closed!”

The members of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council are: France, Italy, Japan, Canada, Germany, Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Presidency of the European Union, the European Commission and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) represented by Turkey.

The Peace Implementation Council consists of 55 countries and organizations. It was established in 1995 in London, after the conclusion of the Dayton Peace Agreement.

Prime Minister Albin Kurti was received at a meeting by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Athens. On this occasion, Kurti said that Kosovo wants to build on the existing historical ties between the two peoples and to establish relations with Greece, as an important element for long-term regional stability.

According to the press release, Prime Minister Kurti said that Greece and Kosovo should strengthen their independent relations due to the long common history, the common goal of peace and security in the Balkans and the long common future.

He thanked for the support and constructive attitude towards our country, which Greece has shown especially in recent months, with the support given in favor of visa liberalization for the citizens of Kosovo and the commitment for Kosovo’s membership in international organizations.

Prime Minister Kurti demanded that Greece join the bloc of countries that have recognized Kosovo.

Prime Minister Kurti briefed his Greek counterpart on the achievements of the new government in Kosovo in the first 100 days, including good pandemic management. In this meeting, Prime Minister Mitsotakis reaffirmed Greece’s commitment to promoting and further strengthening cooperation between the two countries in the framework of promoting the European perspective of the Western Balkans.

During this meeting, they also talked about the increase of bilateral economic relations between Kosovo and Greece.

Sport
March 22, 2021 – 00:45

Find out the details

The Director of the Kosovo Representative, Muharrem Sahiti, gave a super-news on Sunday night, writes Zeri.info.

Footballers who are active in France, Valon Berisha, Arbër Zeneli and Bersant Celina will join Kosovo for the matches in March.

“We already have the confirmation that Berisha, Zeneli and Celina will join the team. We have met all the conditions for the clubs and they will join us”, said Muharrem Sahiti for Kanal 10, Zeri.info reports.

Days ago, in a statement issued by the French league, it was announced that the clubs will not be able to give permission to players who are outside the European Union area due to anti-COVID-19 measures. /Zeri.info