SOFIA Bulgaria sign deal with German electric car manufacturers. After the German giant Volkswagen refused to build a new plant in Bulgaria, a German startup specialising in electric cars has shown interest in investing €140 million in the country. Read more. /// BUCHAREST Romanian set for largest growth in the EU. Romania’s economy is expected to rise by 7.4% in 2021, the largest growth in the EU, according to the summer economic forecast presented on Wednesday by the European Commission. The forecast is improved by more than two percentage points compared with the spring forecast, released less than two months ago. The Commission said the much-improved estimation is due to the stronger-than-expected performance of the economy in the first quarter of this year. (Bogdan Neagu | EURACTIV.ro) /// ZAGREB Low vaccination rate in Croatia prompts government intervention. The Croatian Public Health Institute (HZJZ) reported on Tuesday that just 37.3% of the total population, or 45% of the adult population had been vaccinated. ” A nation that wants to be competitive, lucrative, gets vaccinated without thinking twice, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said. The prime minister raised Malta as an example, where 80% of the population had been vaccinated. Earlier, he indicated that the cabinet would prepare a legislative basis for making the provision of job-retention support conditional on vaccination. Unionists and employers emphasised that the government cannot hold workers and employers responsible but instead, it needs to legally regulate the problem regarding inoculating the population. Director of the Croatian Employers’ Association (HUP) Damir Zorić said that they can understand the state’s expectations and appeals. He believes that everyone should be vaccinated but that there is no legal instrument to compel citizens to do so. “The state has to make a decision and then we will be obliged to implement that decision,” said Zorić. (Željko Trkanjec | EURACTIV.hr) /// LJUBLJANA Slovenia passes stimulus package targeted at hospitality sector. The Slovenian parliament has passed another stimulus law designed to help businesses cope with the pandemic, with a €243 million package targeted at hospitality, tourism and the events industry. Read more. /// BELGRADE Serbian PM: Giving Belgrade Airport under concession good economic move. Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic stated on Wednesday that the decision to give the Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport under concession to the French Vinci Group was a good economic move and that, if that had not been the case, the airport would not have survived the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more. /// PODGORICA Montenegro close to securing deal European, US banks on Chinese loan. Montenegro is weeks away from securing a deal to either swap or refinance with European and US banks nearly $1 billion in debt owed to China, and hopes to reduce the interest rate on the debt to below 1%, Economy Minister Jakov Milatović said. Read more. /// PRISTINA Former Kosovo minister indicted for hiring firm to promote border changes. Kosovo’s Special Prosecution has filed an indictment against former European Integration Minister Dhurata Hoxha and four current and former officials of the ministry over a contract that saw budget money spent on a Paris-based PR company that promoted Kosovo’s “territorial modification” as a way to solve the Kosovo-Serbia dispute two years ago, Prishtina Insight reported. The deal would have seen some Serb-majority areas in the north of Kosovo joining Serbia, with Albanian-majority areas in southern Serbia going the other way. The border change option – which triggered sharp reactions both inside and outside Kosovo – was first raised by former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci, who is now in the Hague awaiting trial after the Specialist Prosecution filed an indictment against him and three other former members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed during Kosovo’s 1998-99 war. (Željko Trkanjec | EURACTIV.hr) /// TIRANA EU criticises Albania’s new media authority chief. The election of Armela Krasniqi as chairwoman of the Audiovisual Media Authority (AMA) by parliament with 83 votes in favour has sparked criticism from the EU office in Tirana, BIRN reported. Read more. |