Serbia Sends Bill to Montenegro over Unpaid Rent

The Serbian government has sent a 1.5 million euro bill to Montenegro's government for three years of rent on a luxury villa, used as the country's embassy in Belgrade, which has not been paid.




Blic daily reports that the deadline for payment is January 22, otherwise the Montenegrin embassy will be forced to move out.



"The next step is a warning before filing a lawsuit. We hope this will not happen, but we will strictly adhere to the rules of the legal relationship," a source from the Serbian government told the daily.



This is another move of Serbia's government following Montenegro's decision to establish diplomatic relations with Kosovo, despite Serbia's earlier requests for Montenegro to wait for a few months - until the International Court of Justice comes to a conclusion on whether Kosovo's unilaterally declaration of independence was in line with international law. Immediately after Montenegro's decision, the Serbian government announced the withdrawal of its ambassador in Podgorica.



The villa of 500 square metres, surrounded by a garden of 18 acres including a swimming pool, is worth an estimated 35,000 euro rent per month.



The building is being used based on an old agreement between the Montenegrin government and former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, SRJ, from 1994. The Serbian government is paying some 11,500 euro for renting its embassy building in Podgorica.



The Secretary of the Montenegrin Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mirsad Bibovic, announced earlier that talks with Serbia on finding an acceptable solution on the issue will be held.



According to the daily, no one in Podgorica has reacted to the bill. It is possible that the agreement will include resolving issues surrounding the Serbian embassy in Podgorica, which is temporarily located in the centre of Podgorica but is not suitable as its entrance is directly on the street.

Source:balkaninsight.com/

Depp gets life-sized statue in Serbia

Johnny Depp was in Serbia Wednesday to witness the unveiling of a life-sized statue of himself.

Depp joined Serbian director Emir Kusturica at the Kustendorf International Film and Music Festival in a small mountain village in southwest Serbia.

Kusturica, who won the Palme d'Or at Cannes twice for his films When Father Was Away on Business and Underground, founded the festival in Mokra Gora three years ago.

Depp, star of Chocolat and Pirates of the Caribbean, met with Serbian President Boris Tadic before flying into the mountain village.

Depp said he admires filmmakers such as Tim Burton and Kusturica who create truly original work.

The Hollywood heartthrob is set to star in the Serbian director's film about legendary Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa.

Kusturica said Depp will stay three days in the region. "He will lead several workshops for participants of the festival, drink wine, watch films and visit some locations where he will shoot a film about Pancho Villa," Kusturica said.

Source:cbc.ca/

Eye on the world

Christian Orthodox believers jump into a frigid lake in Belgrade, Serbia, to retrieve a cross. Orthodox Serbs celebrate Epiphany on Jan. 19, following the old Julian calendar; the race to retrieve a cross that has been dropped into a lake or river is part of the tradition.

Source:washingtonpost.com/

Johnny Depp Is Worshipped in Serbia

MYFOX NATIONAL) - "Pirates of the Caribbean" star Johnny Depp is idolized worldwide, but one country in particular gave the actor special treatment recently.

BalkanInsight.com reports that the Hollywood hero met with Serbian president Boris Tadic when he jetted into Belgrade, Serbia, from his Kentucky hometown. President Tadic introduced him to his two daughters, who presented Depp with a drawing they had created of him as Jack Sparrow in the pirate flick.

According to the Serbian newspaper, Depp was greeted by the country's hottest filmmaker, Emir Kusturica, upon his arrival.

"Depp will be my guest for three days," Emir Kusturica told the daily Blic . "He will lead several workshops for participants of the [third annual Kustendorf International Film and Music Festival], drink wine, watch films and visit some locations for an upcoming movie shoot."

And dad-of-two Depp was just in time to witness a life-size statue of himself, handcrafted by Serbian sculptor Dragan Nikolic Baja, unveiled in a mountain village, followed by fireworks.

The hunky actor was clearly amused by the remarkable monument, as he posed beside his chiseled spitting image in a photo on People.com .

Reminiscent of Depp's "21 Jump Street" days, the sculpture mirrored a younger Depp, with a preppy haircut and a button-down shirt paired with jeans.

The "Public Enemies" star will shoot a new movie, "Seven Friends of Pancho Villa and the Woman with Six Fingers," with Kusturica and alongside Salma Hayek and Serbian actor Miki Manojlovic in late 2011.

It's easy to see why the director chose Depp to star in the upcoming film. “He is a man with a secret. Hollywood mostly creates people who win people over with their attractive appearances and action, while Johnny Depp fascinates the audience with his personality and spirituality,” Kusturica told Blic .

Source:myfoxspokane.com/