Belgium

EU mission to take over in Kosovo on Tuesday, Solana says

EU to push for closer ties with Pakistan

EU allocates extra aid for displaced in Sri Lanka, laments killing

European Parliament gives Dalai Lama rapturous welcome

Dalai LamaBrussels - The 14th Dalai Lama called for "warm-heartedness" and mutual trust Thursday, and rejected claims that he is seeking to separate his homeland of Tibet from China, in a speech that received a standing ovation from the European Parliament in Brussels.

In a 20-minute address interspersed by pearls of wisdom, personal anecdotes, humour and applause, the spiritual and political leader of the Tibetan people also said it was wrong to view worldwide support for his cause as being directed against the Chinese government.

Standard Liege's Jovanovich linked with Munich, Madrid, Sevilla

Bayern MunichBrussels - Standard Liege striker Milan Jovanivic is linked with a winter break move to a top club such as Real Madrid or Bayern Munich, according to Belgian news reports on Wednesday.

The Het Laatste Nieuws daily said that the German champions Munich were ready to splash out 10 million euros (12.6 million dollars) for the 27-year-old Serbian marksman, who has a contract at Staadard until 2010.

But Munich coach Juergen Klinsmann said on Wednesday that he "knows nothing" about such a plan.

NATO chief: More forces needed in Afghanistan to avert stalemate

NATO LogoBrussels - NATO needs more forces in Afghanistan if it wants to avoid a stalemate in its five-year-old fight against the Taliban insurgency, the alliance's chief said Wednesday.

And while some progress was being made, most notably with voter registration and with the development of an Afghan police force, "huge challenges" remained, Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said.

De Hoop Scheffer was speaking to reporters after a two-day meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels.

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