Kosovo government takes control of Trepca mine, Serbs protest

Kosovo's parliament voted late on Friday to put a huge mining complex under government control and save it from bankruptcy, despite objections from Belgrade and protests by local Serbs.
The Trepca lead, zinc and silver mines, which before the armed conflicts that swept through the Balkans in the 1990s accounted for two thirds of Kosovo's gross domestic product, are currently operating at minimum capacity with creditor claims at 1.4 billion euros ($1.57 billion).
The complex's ownership structure has been the subject of dispute between Kosovo and Serbia. Belgrade claims 75 percent of Trepca,... read more