By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
November 11 --
The Bosnia and
Herzegovina
resolution put
to the vote in
the UN
Security
Council on
November 11
drew a rare
abstention,
from Russia.
After that,
the speeches
went on in
their predicable
way.
High
Representative
for BiH
Valentin Inzko
said that “we
expect the
needs of
citizens to be
tackled head
on and for the
country to be
put back on
track for
Euro-Atlantic
integration.”
Russian
Ambassador
Vitaly
Churkin,
himself Russia's
envoy to
Bosnia at one
point, said
that the 5
plus 2 process
in the country
should not be
“infused with
new concepts
such as the
integration of
the country
into European
Union and
NATO.”
Guess
what was the
elephant in
the room, or
chamber? On
November 12 at
2:30 pm, there
is now scheduled
a briefing
about Ukraine,
by Oscar
Fernandez
Taranco's
replacement
Jens
Toyberg-Frandzen
of Denmark,
who was until
recently UNDP
Resident
Representative
ad interim in
Ukraine
(July-September
2014) and back
in 2003-2006,
Resident
Coordinator
and Resident
Representative
in Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
Small world.
Earlier this
year at the
International
Monetary
Fund's May 22
embargoed
briefing,
spokesperson
Gerry Rice
answered Inner
City Press'
question about
the Balkan
floods.
From
the IMF
transcript
released
today, video
here from
Minute 26:
GERRY
RICE: Let me
go online for
a minute,
because I've
got a couple
of questions
here from
Matthew
Russell Lee.
He asked
Mali... and
about the
serious
flooding in
the Balkans
which we're
all, of
course, very
concerned
about that.
He's asking
about the
impact on the
countries of
the Balkans,
and Serbia,
and Bosnia.
Serbia's,
again,
been
significantly
affected. We
have great
concern, also,
about the
human
casualties and
the
wide-spread
damage, but we
do not yet
know the full
extent of
that. As an EU
pre-accession
country Serbia
will be
eligible for
aid from the
EU's disaster
Fund.
In the
meantime, the
IMF engaged
with Serbia
through our
policy advice,
as well as in
our discussion
with other
international,
financial
organizations
through our
resident
representative.
On Bosnia,
actually, we
have a staff
team on the
ground right
now.
Inner
City Press, beyond Mali
(reported here),
had also asked
about Yemen,
adding the
response to
that as an
update and now
here:
ICP
Question:
Yemen's
Finance
Minister said
the country
will reduce
fuel subsidies
to get a $500M
IMF program,
hoped to be
concluded by
end of May.
What is the
status, and
what about
fuel shortages
and impacted
Yemenis?
IMF
Answer: A
mission is
discussing
with the
authorities
their economic
reform program
and how the
IMF can
support them.
Well,
a similar
reduction in
subsidies by
the government
in 2005 led
protests that
left dozens
killed and
wounded. And
now? Watch
this site.
, 
