ECONOMY-EU: Portugal – Still Lagging

Two decades after the two Iberian Peninsula nations joined the European community, Portugal's economy has remained at a virtual standstill for the last five consecutive years, while Spain has surged forward to become the world's eighth largest economic power, overtaking Canada.

EUROPE: Gas Crisis Rekindles Nuclear Option

Environmentalists are warning against the new push towards nuclear energy in Europe following the gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine.

FINANCE-SERBIA: State Takeover Raises Questions

After making much of privatisation, the Serbian government has taken over one of the biggest private firms, the cell phone company Mobtel.

TRADE-RUSSIA: Cold Peace Descends on WTO Talks

Russia hopes to sign necessary agreements to join the WTO this year despite significant differences with the United States.

GERMANY: World Cup – a Magnet for Forced Prostitution?

Football players, fans and journalists from all over the world are getting ready to head to the World Cup in Germany. And among those packing their bags are about 40,000 sex workers who will be there to satisfy the high demand for their services.

CHALLENGES 2005-2006: Austrian Hopes for EU Revival

Austria plans to revive a Europe fraught with political crisis during 2005 when it takes over presidency of the European Union Sunday (Jan. 1).

BALKANS: Austrian Claims Unsettle Croatia

Croatian plans to return property confiscated by Yugoslav communists after World War II to Austrian citizens have sparked controversy rarely seen within the nation.

POPULATION-PORTUGAL: Getting Older and Older

The Portuguese population is getting older and older, people are marrying less frequently and later, and the net birth rate is close to zero, according to the latest figures published by the National Institute of Statistics (INE).

SPAIN: Farmers Feel Pinch of Drought in Their Pockets

Farmers in Spain will continue to suffer drought next year in the countryside and in their bank accounts, because of the absence of rainfall, a drop in production, and a reduction in economic aid from the European Union.

SOCIETY-BALKANS: A New Royal Past Rises

For decades since World War II, no one talked of royalty in Serbia. In the communist days, royals belonged to fairy tales and history books, or lived in the memories of those old enough to remember.

UKRAINE: Winter Brings Payback Time

Russia is playing the energy card by raising state-owned Gazprom's fuel prices, in what Ukraine has termed a politically charged move.

MIGRATION: What Some People Brought to Germany

Two interlocking exhibitions depicting the rich ebb and flow of migrant workers in Germany over the past 500 years are currently being staged at Berlin's German Historical Museum. One is called 'Migration 1500 to 2005', and the other 'Immigration Land Germany - The Hugeuenots'.

RIGHTS-FRANCE: New Moves to Fight Forced Marriages

Fatia was in love, but months earlier she had been forced into marriage with another man.

RUSSIA: Popular Putin Set to Drive Development

The popularity of Russian President Vladimir Putin has been boosted by his commitment to social spending, even if questions persist about his authoritarian rule.

SOCIETY-BALKANS: Brcko – An Example for the Rest of Bosnia

Like hundreds of towns and villages, ten years after the war ended in Bosnia, Brcko bears some visible scars of the bloody conflicts, like the clock tower of the railway and bus station, wounded by artillery, with no hands to show the time.

RUSSIA: Is Anti-Terrorism Bill Merely Lip Service?

Russian parliamentarians have endorsed new amendments to a bill that would allow them to investigate terrorist attacks independently of the country's security services.

HEALTH: Spain Joins Growing Anti-Smoking Trend

Spain has joined in a growing worldwide trend by adopting strict new legislation that will ban smoking in the workplace and other enclosed public spaces as of Jan. 1, while requiring bars and restaurants to offer non-smoking sections.

CHALLENGES 2005-2006: Europe Looking for a Way Forward

The year 2005 will be remembered as the ''annus horribilis" in the European Union with political wrangling, terrorist attacks, social unrest and natural disasters, and there are questions over how the bloc will progress next year.

SOCIETY-BALKANS: Kosovo Tops the News, but Not a Priority for Serbs

Judging merely from the media or from politicians' statements, one could assume that the Kosovo issue is a priority for a large portion of the Serbian public.

RUSSIA: Bill to Regulate NGOs Has Critics Within and Without

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered amendments to a controversial bill on non-governmental organisations, saying the legislators must take into account the concerns expressed by the Council of Europe, the newly created Public Chamber and Russian NGOs - but warned against their role in political activities.

ENVIRONMENT: France Overrides Wind Energy Foes

Only a massive immediate investment in wind energy and the installation of up to 6,000 new wind turbines around the country over the next decade will permit France to reach its target of further reducing carbon dioxide emissions, according to a new report by a state agency.