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WORLD NEWSSaturday 26 September
Migrant Crisis:
Croatia lifts blockade with Serbia, easing border tensions
PABLO GORONDI ing ahead with plans to A group of migrants lines up to cross the border from Croatia near the village of Beremend,
JOVANA GEC build a fence along the Hungary, Friday, Sept. 25, 2015. Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orban said he will hold
Associated Press Croatian border. consultations with other countries in the region and with the United Nations before making a
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) The concessions came decision about closing the border with Croatia for migrants.
— Southeastern Europe’s shortly after a European
squabbling leaders moved Union summit on the mi- (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Friday to ease the border grant crisis, suggesting that
tensions that have esca- the 28-nation bloc had be-
lated for more than a week come alarmed at the lack
since Hungary sought to of cooperation between
slow the flood of asylum neighboring governments
seekers through its territory. and the increasingly ugly
Croatia reopened its main tone of their exchanges.
cargo crossing Friday with Just hours before Croatia
Serbia after heated ex- announced its decision, a
changes between the two senior EU official appealed
former Yugoslav states. The to authorities in Zagreb to
decision came hours after change their minds.
Hungarian Prime Minister “This crisis is of global di-
Viktor Orban pledged to mension,” Johannes Hahn,
consult with governments commissioner for regional
in the region before mov- policy, told reporters in Bel-
grade, the Serbian capital. responsible for tens of thou- would insert more confu-
Hungary’s closure of its bor- sands of people. The gov- sion into an already difficult
der with Serbia on Sept. ernment in Zagreb then situation in the Balkans.
15 triggered a domino ef- accused Serbia of shunting “It is not enough to tell the
fect that sent those fleeing the refugees into its terri- world through the press
their homelands scurrying tory and closed the cargo what we are doing and
from one European border crossing in retaliation. why,” Orban told report-
to the next as they tried to Some 60,000 asylum seek- ers in Vienna. “We have to
reach Western Europe. ers have entered Croatia go everywhere and gather
Croatia at first welcomed since Hungary shut its bor- support before the clos-
the migrants, thinking they der with Serbia on Sept. 15. ing of the (border) takes
would transit through to Orban on Friday sought to place.” The chaos also
Slovenia, Austria and then ease tensions, promising to strained relations between
Germany. But Slovenia consult with others before Croatia and Serbia, old
refused to let the people Hungary completes a razor- rivals who fought a war
pass, leaving Croatia, one wire fence along its border amid the breakup of Yugo-
of the EU’s poorest nations, with Croatia, a move that slavia in the 1990s.q
Russia, Ukraine reach deal on winter gas supplies
The Associated Press off in 2009 caused serious Maros Sefcovic,
BRUSSELS (AP) — An EU offi- disruptions in shipments of
cial says Russia and Ukraine Russian gas to EU countries. an EU Commission vice
have ended months of Last winter, Russia and
uncertainty and finally Ukraine struck an emer- president, said the new
reached agreement on gency deal on gas prices,
supplies of natural gas to but that agreement subse- deal was initialed Friday in
Ukraine for the coming win- quently expired.
ter. Gas disputes between EU-brokered talks seeking Brussels by Russian Energy
Russia and Ukraine have a similar agreement on gas
led to cut-offs of supply in for the coming winter be- Minister Alexander No-
the past, and one stand- gan in March.
vak and Ukrainian Energy
Minister Volodymyr Dem-
chyshyn. He said it assured
Ukraine would receive
Russian gas through next
March.q
