Montenegro's parliamentary elections herald the end of Djukanovic's era

In the midst of a severe economic crisis, parliamentary elections have been planned in Montenegro for August 30th. The expected voter turnout is 70%. According to sociologists, President Milo Dukanovic's Socialist Party which has been ruling for 30 years will take up to 35% of the vote. The two opposition parties, the Democratic Front and Democratic Montenegro, will have 25% and 15% of the ballots, respectively. Governance is likely to depend on the representation of the two ethnic Albanian and Bosniak parties. Serbs make up more than 30% of Montenegro's population and are dissatisfied with the country's entry into NATO, BTA reports.

Greece is expanding its territorial waters in the Ionian Sea up to 12 miles

Amid sharp tensions with Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean, Greece is expanding its territorial waters in the Ionian Sea from 6 to 12 nautical miles, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said. This happened after the parliament in Athens ratified the country's maritime agreements with Italy and Egypt, Keep talking Greece reported. Mitsotakis clarified that Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias would go to Tirana to negotiate with Albania on the demarcation of the sea borders between the two neighbouring countries, a project developed over the past few years. Criticized for endangering the country's national interests, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama wrote on Facebook that "the sea and land are not given as gifts" and the Greek action did not change the agreements already reached on the issue between Tirana and Athens, BGNES reported.

Cinemas, theatres and restaurants re-open in Romania on September 1st

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis has announced that theatres, cinemas and indoor restaurant spaces may reopen as of September 1st, Ziare.com reported. There are two areas that are very important to resume operation. "The first thing I care about is culture. Theatres and cinemas will be able to open under special safety conditions, with free seats between spectators, with masks," President Iohannis announced. The second sector that is suffering and it is good to resume its activities are hotels, restaurants and cafes. "The weather is getting colder and the open spaces will soon be unusable," the president added. The ban will be lifted a day after parliament votes on a vote of no confidence in the cabinet of Prime Minister Ludovic Orban on August 31st.

The Turkish president expects to find more gas in the Black Sea

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expects Ankara to discover more natural gas fields in the Black Sea. The already discovered deposits are part of a larger deposit field. "Good news keeps coming. There cannot be only one deposit there," the Turkish leader said. On August 21st, Erdogan officially announced that Turkey had discovered large deposits of natural gas in the Black Sea, near the junction of Turkey's, Bulgaria's and Romania's special economic zones. By 2023, the authorities expect to start deliveries to the domestic market. According to Erdogan, the volume of the deposit field is 320 billion cubic metres, which is estimated at 65 billion dollars, BTA reported. Experts were skeptical about the news because British Petroleum and Exxon mobil had already explored the gas region and found nothing promising there.

The newest all-Serbian holiday will celebrate the breakthrough at Dobro Pole

The leaders of Serbia and the Bosnian Republika Srpska have agreed to introduce a new pan-Serbian holiday to unite all Serbs around the world. The Day of Serbian Unity, Freedom and the National Flag will be celebrated on September 15th, the anniversary of the breakthrough of the Thessaloniki front in 1918, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said after meeting with Bosnian Presidency member Milorad Dodik. "The holiday will be celebrated in all Serbian communities around the world to show that we belong to one nation and rejoice in our victories and mourn our common misfortunes," Vucic was quoted as saying by Serbian state television. On September 15, 1918, the Entente troops broke through the Bulgarian front at Dobro Pole, and the Serbian troops again occupied Macedonia.

Compiled by Ivo Ivanov

Photos: EPA/BGNES