I. EUOBSERVER - Balkan summit exposes lack of EU unity
European Union absenteeism and apparent lack of interest left participants of a Western Balkans summit over the weekend with bitter feelings. The Slovenian and Croatian prime ministers Borut Pahor and Jadranka Kosor hosted on Saturday (20 March) the first ever meeting of regional leaders that was not organised by others. With the EU regularly stressing the importance of regional cooperation, the organisers were hoping for top EU officials to show up in person and give symbolic support to the initiative. But European Council President Herman Van Rompuy cancelled his participation at the last minute. Jose Manuel Barroso, head of the EU's executive commission, never considered travelling to Brdo at all. And the EU's new foreign affairs chief, Catherine Ashton, was among the first of the invitees to turn down the invitation. Participants and diplomats taking part in the Brdo meeting even voiced suspicion that Spain, current holders of the rotating EU Presidency, may have encouraged Serbia to make its participation conditional on demands to which Kosovo clearly would not agree to. Belgrade insists its former province, which declared independence two years ago, is legally still part of Serbian territory. Thus, enlargement commissioner Stefan Fuele was the only EU institution representative in Brdo. But he left the meeting after less than one hour, excusing himself for being tired after several days of travelling, according to diplomats. With the exception of Serbia, all countries of former Yugoslavia plus Albania were represented. Serbia's foreign minister Vuk Jeremic stated immediately after the meeting that it had been unsuccessful and that "Serbia and the EU could not participate." While there was disappointment about the Serbian boycott, the organisers noted that on Kosovo and future enlargement, the EU now seems to be more divided than the region itself.
II. EARTHTIMES - EU opens Schengen internal borders to long-stay visa holders
The European Union on Monday opened its internal borders to non-European holders of long-stay visas for individual member states, agreeing to let them travel across the Schengen border-free zone. Hitherto, holders of visas valid for more than three months had been barred from travelling freely throughout the Schengen area, making it in some cases impossible for them even to pass through the zone on the way back to their homelands. Under the rules agreed Monday, holders of long-stay visas will be allowed to travel freely throughout the Schengen area for up to 90 days within a six-month period - the same right already granted to non-EU citizens who hold residence permits in the bloc. At the same time, the rules oblige member states to run applicants for long-stay visas through a Schengen-wide security check, to make sure no other member of the zone has tagged them as a security risk. They also oblige member states to limit the validity of a long- stay visa to one year. Anyone wanting to stay in any Schengen country for more than a year in the future will have to apply for a residence permit. The Schengen states are Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. Britain, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Ireland and Romania are EU members but remain outside the Schengen zone.
The oldest stone wall in Greece, which has stood at the entrance of a cave in Thessaly for the last 23,000 years, has been discovered by palaeontologists, the ministry of culture said Monday. The age of the find, determined by an optical dating test, singles it out as "probably one of the oldest in the world", according to a ministry press release. "The dating matches the coldest period of the most recent ice age, indicating that the cavern's paleolithic inhabitants built it to protect themselves from the cold", said the ministry. The wall blocked two-thirds of the entrance to the cave, located close to Kalambaka, itself near the popular tourist area and monastic centre of Meteora in central Greece. Greek palaeontologists have been excavating the site for the last 25 years.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected U.S. demands that the Jewish state freeze Jewish settlements around Jerusalem. The Israeli leader was speaking before departing for the United States where he is to address a pro-Israel lobby and meet with U.S. President Barack Obama. In Gaza on March 21, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Israel to end its blockade on Gaza. The blockade causes "unacceptable suffering" and "undercuts moderates and encourages extremists," Ban said after visiting a housing project in the Khan Younis refugee camp.
V. RIANOVOSTI - Russia-U.S. arms deal 'on the verge' of finalization
Russia and the United States will finalize a strategic arms reduction pact within days, a Foreign Ministry official said on Monday. "We are literally on the verge - I think the business will be done within a few days," Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said. He added, however, that it was too soon to say where the pact would be signed. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday the negotiators "have entered the home stretch." He said, however, that did not mean the treaty would be signed immediately. Lavrov said the treaty would be 20 pages long, with an extensive protocol attached. Russia and the United States have been negotiating a strategic arms reduction pact since the two countries' presidents met in April last year, but the work on the document has dragged on, with U.S. plans for missile defense in Europe a particular sticking point. Moscow wants to include a link between missile defenses and cuts in offensive weapons, but the U.S. Senate is unlikely to ratify any document formally linking the two issues. START 1, the cornerstone of a post-Cold War arms control setup, expired on December 5 2009.
An evening of Russian folk and Soviet-era songs was held in Nicosia, Cyprus, on Sunday, to mark the Republic’s 50th anniversary and the establishment of diplomatic relations with Russia. Dozens of politicians, businessmen, doctors, teachers and musicians, who had graduated from Soviet or Russian institutions, attended the concert at the Russian Centre of Science and Culture. Over 3,000 Cypriots have studied in the Soviet Union or in Russia.
VII. SIGNON - Cleric knew his calling at early age
Growing up in La Jolla, James Paffhausen felt the tug of religion at a young age. He knew he would become a priest one day. “I believe God was demanding something more of my life,” said the La Jolla High School graduate who now serves as the Washington, D.C.-based leader of the Orthodox Church in America. The church, which is part of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, has an estimated 800 parishes, missions, monasteries and other institutions in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Now known as Metropolitan Jonah, primate of the Orthodox Church in America, the former Episcopalian who converted when he was in college will return to the region this weekend to speak at Poway’s St. John of Damascus Orthodox Church. He will be speaking about Orthodox spirituality and family life. Described as humble and approachable, Metropolitan Jonah is quick to marvel at the direction life has taken him. He said he had “no idea” he would reach the top position in his church one day. He first got a degree in anthropology at the University of California Santa Cruz. On a trip to Russia in the early 1990s, he met spiritual elders who inspired him into monastic life. Metropolitan Jonah would go on to take various roles in the church, including founding a monastery in Marin County where he lived for a decade. Life at the monastery wasn’t as isolated as some might imagine, he said. There were lots of visitors. Computers and the Internet were even allowed under certain circumstances. “Monks aren’t free to just play on the Internet; it’s a tool,” he said. But there was contact with the outside world. “(Monasteries) are hives of activity,” he said. That’s the type of perspective that will make Metropolitan Jonah an interesting and valuable speaker, said the Rev. Alexander Federoff, rector at the Poway church where the religious leader is scheduled to appear this weekend. “He speaks from experience as opposed to reading books,” Federoff said. Federoff says the faith, steeped in tradition, continues to draw people who are looking for something that “doesn’t change with the times, something people could trust.” An estimated 750 families in the county are Orthodox Church faithful, said Archpriest George Morelli, who serves as assistant pastor at St. George’s Antiochian Orthodox Church in City Heights. The event this weekend is open to the public and will offer information on Eastern Orthodox spirituality. Morelli described Metropolitan Jonah as someone who has “a sense of both the tradition of the church and the needs that we have in the United States for spiritual focus and how important it is.” Perhaps a sign of his personality, the religious leader even keeps a Facebook page. He also spends a lot of time traveling around the country. The best part of the job, he said, is “to really make a difference in people’s lives.” To read more about the Orthodox Church in America, click here.