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Local Kosovo Serbs stand near barricades near the closed Serbia-Kosovo border crossing of Jarinje September 16, 2011.

Kosovo and Serbia: A Little Goodwill Could Go a Long Way

Europe Report N°215, 2 February 2012

The dispute about Kosovo’s sovereignty continues to fuel tensions and violent clashes in northern Kosovo, halting Kosovo’s and Serbia’s fragile dialogue and putting at risk Serbia’s EU candidacy.

Boko Haram: Interview with Africa Program Director Comfort Ero
A car burns at the scene of a bomb explosion at St. Theresa Catholic Church at Madalla, Suleja, just outside Nigeria's capital Abuja, December 25, 2011.

A car burns at the scene of a bomb explosion at St. Theresa Catholic Church at Madalla, Suleja, just outside Nigeria's capital Abuja, 25 December 2011. Photo: REUTERS

2 February 2012: Global Observatory interviewed Comfort Ero, our Program Director Africa, to discuss Boko Haram, the radical Islamist group responsible for violent acts intended to destabilize Nigeria and ultimately create an Islamist state governed by Sharia law. Their recent attack on January 20th killed 178 people. Comfort Ero says she sees clear signs "the group has become ever more dangerous," though she believes that the evidence remains sketchy about the extent of Boko Haram’s networks with other terror groups.

Military Exercises and Stability on the Korean Peninsula
North Korea's new leader Kim Jong-un (L) applauds as he visits the Seoul Ryu Kyong Su 105 Guards Tank Division of the Korean People's Army (KPA) in Pyongyang, in this picture released by KCNA January 1, 2012.

North Korea's new leader Kim Jong-un (L) applauds as he visits the Seoul Ryu Kyong Su 105 Guards Tank Division of the Korean People's Army (KPA) in Pyongyang, in this picture released by KCNA January 1, 2012. Photo: KCNA via REUTERS

1 February 2012: Last Friday, 27 January, the U.S.-ROK Combined Forces Command (CFC) announced the dates for two joint and combined military exercises in the ROK. Key Resolve, an annual command post exercise will be held from 27 February to 9 March, and Foal Eagle, a tactical field exercise, will be held from 1 March to 30 April. The DPRK immediately denounced the exercises, which Pyongyang has labeled an “unpardonable grave military provocation to the sovereignty of the DPRK and a wanton challenge to the international community’s desire for peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula”.

Latest UN Summit Fails to Bring Breakthrough in Cyprus Talks
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, flanked by Greek Cypriot Leader Demetris Christofias (left), and Turkish Cypriot Leader Derviş Eroğlu.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, flanked by Greek Cypriot Leader Demetris Christofias (left), and Turkish Cypriot Leader Derviş Eroğlu, briefs the press on the two-day talks he convened with the leaders. At right is Alexander Downer, Mr. Ban’s Special Adviser on Cyprus. Photo: UN Photo

31 January 2012: On 22-24 January, Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders held their fifth trilateral meeting with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon since November 2010. Even as the leaders arrived at the Greentree Foundation (Long Island, NY), however, hopes of a breakthrough were dim: both sides admitted there had been almost no progress since their last trilateral meeting in October 2011 and none of the seven negotiating issues had been resolved. With a disappointingly fruitless summit behind them – and to the dismay of an increasingly frustrated UN – the leaders now look unlikely to produce a comprehensive settlement to reunite the island in a bizonal bicommunal federation before the Greek Cypriot-led Republic of Cyprus takes over EU’s rotating presidency in July 2012.

Crisis Group Asia Briefings 2012

 Asia Briefings 2012
Join Crisis Group experts for Asia-focused briefings in Singapore and Jakarta on 21 and 23 February 2012. These high-level events will examine urgent issues and solutions concerning major conflict flashpoints across the region. 

For details, agendas and registration, please click here or contact events@crisisgroup.org. Reserve your space today. 

Latest Translations

Thailand: The Calm Before Another Storm
Asia Briefing N°121, 11 Apr 2011
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Asia Report N°214, 30 Nov 2011
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Holding Libya Together: Security Challenges after Qadhafi
Middle East/North Africa Report N°115, 14 Dec 2011
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