Left-wing politics

Police in Podgorica on Thursday confirmed the arrest of three international arms traffickers suspected of conspiring to sell large weaponry to FARC rebels in Colombia, a movement designated as a terrorist organization.

The two Romanians, Cristian Vintila, 44, and Virgil Flaviu Georgescu, 42, and an Italian, Massimo Romagnoli, 43, were arrested on Monday and Tuesday.

The Cypriot Parliament has adopted a government budget that envisions an increase in spending of only 0.6 percent.

The budget forecasts state revenue of 5.928 billion euros compared with 5.952 billion euros in 2014, with spending of 6.660 billion euros.

The House of Representatives approved the tight spending plan late Tuesday by a vote of 29-26.

The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) has appealed to the high court for the annulment of certain articles of a controversial new judicial package, on the grounds that they breach Turkey's Constitution.

The spokesperson of the Social Democrat Party (PSD) group of senators, Gabriela Firea, has announced on Tuesday that the Social Democrats have approved a series of modifications in the composition of some standing committees, the modifications being determined by the "naming of some senators in ministerial posts".

BELGRADE - Leader of the Democratic Party (DS) Bojan Pajtic has met on Tuesday with a delegation of the Italian Senate and said that the role of this party was crucial for the initiation of Serbia's European integration process 14 years ago.

Djukanovic's Democratic Party of Socialists, DPS, scored its latest local government poll win on Sunday in Herceg Novi, a town on the Montenegrin-Croatian border.

Although no party won an absolute majority in Sunday's poll, it was clear that the united opposition list had lost its majority for the first time in 14 years.

Macedonia's main opposition Social Democratic Party, SDSM, has come out against the country's proposed new coat of arms, saying the plan is being pushed as a distraction from the real problems.

"This is a typical example of how the government tries to shift public attention from the many affairs and scandals that they have to answer for," SDSM spokesperson Petre Shilegov said.

BELGRADE - Democratic Party (DS) leader Bojan Pajtic met with the head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Michael Davenport on Thursday to discuss a letter he recently sent on behalf of the party to foreign ambassadors in Serbia.

Opposition parties have criticized the government over its targets during budget talks in Parliament, asking it to reveal spending details.

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has called on the government to explain where taxpayers' money is going and how the budget is being used.

The Social Democratic Party, SDP, elected Niksic at an extraordinary party congress on Saturday after Lagumdzija announced he would not be stand for the job again after the party's disastrous results in the general elections in October. 

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