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The UN Security Council has given the go-ahead for talks to begin soon on the final status of Kosovo. The Balkan province with a majority ethnic Albanian population has been run by the United Nations since 1999. Kosovo Albanians overwhelmingly want independence but Belgrade is determined they will remain part of Serbia. Last week a nine-point plan for Kosovo was put forward by Slovenia's President Janez Drnovsek and it provoked some strong reactions in Serbia-Montenegro. According to this plan Kosovo could be independent within five years, if certain

Dolna zem or Lower Land was the term used in the past to describe the southern regions of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy. In the past many Slovaks would leave home in search of a living in those regions. These expatriates may have left their homes behind but they took their culture with them.

Poles last weekend elected the conservative candidate Lech Kaczynski as their new President. If his campaign is any indication, Mr Kaczynski's Presidency looks like setting itself apart from those of his predecessors. He says post communist Poland is tainted by corruption and by economic reforms that benefit only elites and promises a clean break with the past.

A couple of years ago, allegations that Roma women in Slovakia were being sterilised against their will created a storm of controversy and gave Slovakia negative press around the world. As a result Bratislava ordered a major investigation and two years on the country's general prosecutor has handed down a verdict.

The Borstnik theatre festival held in the city of Maribor is the main theatre festival of its kind in Slovenia. Ignacij Borstnik, whose name the festival bears is considered the founder of artistic theatre in Slovenia. Around the turn of the century he was a master of the most demanding theatre roles at the turn of the century.

The Visegrad four, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia are worried about their borders. The question is can they put up a friendly fence towards their Eastern neighbours and at the same time be the eastern bastion for what many call fortress Europe?

This coming week marks the 50th anniversary of Hungary's 1956 revolution. The heroism and tragedy of that time has been captured in a new book by British writer and researcher, Bob Dent.

The Slovene parliament's approval of the setting up of a protected zone in the northern Adriatic has led to further friction between Slovenia and Croatia. Slovenia says the law would protect the country's sovereign rights on the open sea; Croatia sees the move as legally void and unfounded.

Hungarian film has a rich tradition, but in recent years the country's cinematography - mainly due to a lack of funding and a lack of inspiring subject matter - has failed to impress film critics. But those days appear to be over. Hungarian films seem to have regained a voice of their own and are becoming increasingly popular with Hungarians and festival audiences abroad.

Poland's two right-wing presidential candidates will square it off in a second round of elections in a week's time. The first round proved inconclusive with front runner liberal Donald Tusk gaining a slim lead over his rival conservative Lech Kaczynski. There is mounting concern that the final leg of the presidential contest may be brutal, with both candidates slinging mud at each other.