奥巴马将会见祖马,并在此期间发表重要讲话。但毫无疑问的是他的这次访问将笼罩在纳尔逊·曼德拉病情的阴霾中。曼德拉,这位在全世界都德高望重的人物仍然因病危待在医院。奥巴马已经表示,他不是来这里拍照的,也不想妨碍曼德拉先生以及他的家人。曼德拉先生的前妻温妮·马迪克泽拉·曼德拉表示,依照曼德拉目前的状况来看,奥巴马并不适合在这个时候到医院探望。
European Union leaders have agreed to open membership talks with Serbia by January in recognition of its efforts to improve relations with its former province of Kosovo. The president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, described the decision as historic. Chris Morris reports.
欧盟领导人已同意在1月开启与塞尔维亚之间的成员国谈判,以表彰塞尔维亚在改善同科索沃省的关系中所作出的努力。欧洲委员会主席若泽·曼努埃尔·巴罗佐称这是个历史性的决定。克里斯·莫里斯报道。
For much of the 1990s many countries in Europe regarded Serbia as a prior state, the driving force behind the wars that tore the Balkans apart. But now Serbia is taking a decisive step towards eventual membership of the European Union. The decision to begin accession talks by January is a reward for Serbia's efforts to improve relations with Kosovo, its former province which broke away and then declared independence in 2008. The EU has also decided to start work on what's called an association agreement with Kosovo itself covering a variety of economic and political ties.