Europe

Gabriela Knaul

UN expert urges Bulgaria to include prosecution service in judicial reform

16 May 2011
The United Nations independent expert on the independence of judges and lawyers today urged Bulgaria to include its prosecution service in the reform of its judiciary to streamline the administration of justice in the European country.
Special Representative Lamberto Zannier, briefs the Security Council

Kosovo heading towards phase of greater stability, UN envoy says

12 May 2011
Kosovo appears to be heading towards a period of increased political stability that should in turn promoter greater dialogue between representatives of Kosovo and Serbia, a senior United Nations official told the Security Council today.
Cocaine haul

European cocaine market continues to rise, UN anti-drugs chief warns

10 May 2011
Cocaine use continues to surge in Europe, the top United Nations anti-drugs official warned today, outlining what he called “the dramatic evolution of the international market” for the drug in the past decade.
Valentin Inzko, High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina facing worst crisis in years, Security Council hears

9 May 2011
Bosnia and Herzegovina is facing its worst crisis since fighting stopped in 1995, with no prospect of a new state government being formed, a stalled economy and a direct threat from Republika Srpska to the country’s very existence, the Security Council heard today.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon listening to traditional dancers and singers in Sofia, Bulgaria

UN chief says Eastern Europe can serve as example to 2011’s emerging democracies

6 May 2011
The countries of Central and Eastern Europe that experienced their transitions to democracy 20 years ago offer important lessons for the Arab nations that are currently undergoing revolutions, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today during a visit to Bulgaria.
Special Representative Lisa Buttenheim launches Home for Cooperation in the buffer zone in Nicosia

Top UN official in Cyprus stresses civil society’s role in building inter-communal trust

6 May 2011
The top United Nations official in Cyprus today stressed the importance of the engagement of civil society and the public in moving the peace process forward through building trust between communities on the Mediterranean island to ensure any future unity agreement is sustainable.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (left) and Prime Minister Boyko Borissov of Bulgaria

Visiting Bulgaria, Ban urges youth to join UN in building a safer, equitable world

5 May 2011
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today exhorted the planet’s youth to join forces with the United Nations to build a world free of extreme poverty, safeguard the environment through the sustainable use of natural resources and help eliminate the threat of nuclear catastrophe.
General Assembly

General Assembly designates friendship day and grants EU higher participation status

3 May 2011
The General Assembly today voted to upgrade the status of the European Union’s (EU) participation at the United Nations 192-member body, and to designate 30 July as International Day of Friendship in an effort to strengthen amity between peoples and cultures.
UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe
UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

Secretary-General to make official visit to Bulgaria, Turkey and Switzerland

2 May 2011
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will travel to Bulgaria on Wednesday for the first leg of a three-country visit that will also take the United Nations chief to Istanbul, Turkey, and Geneva, Switzerland.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (R) and Foreign Minister Antonio Milososki of The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

Ban presses for end to issue over name of former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

29 April 2011
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called for a speedy, effective and mutually acceptable resolution of the long-running dispute between Greece and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia over the latter country’s name, saying he was encouraged by recent steps taken by the two sides.