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While Slovakia is trying to combat corruption ahead of EU entry, Slovenia has been told by the EU to give better rights and protection to it's Roma minority.

Whilst Poland and its neighbours deal with the question of war criminals, the Czech Republic is intrigued by a court case which poses other questions about it's past. Franz Ulrich Kinsky - a member of an aristocratic family with long roots in Bohemia - has filed a total of 150 lawsuits, asking the Czech courts to confirm that he is the rightful owner of large amounts of property, which were confiscated from him after the war. He was a child at the time. The Czech authorities argue his father was a Nazi sympathiser and the confiscation was legal

It's now less than one year before Slovakia, along with nine other candidate countries, joins the European Union. But before it does so, the EU says Slovakia has to curb corruption. It's said to be prevalent throughout the country.

Over three quarters of Czech newspapers are now owned by foreign media groups. And while the country's print media has benefited from the investment these companies bring, some Czechs are unhappy that so much of what they read is foreign owned. But do foreign owners exert too much influence?

Slovene's Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel has called on his Austrian Counterpart Benita Ferrero-Waldner, to save Radio Dva, the Slovene-language radio station of the southern Austrian province of Carinthia. It went off air a couple of weeks ago, following a nearly six-month struggle to survive - including hunger strikes, staff working without salaries and protests outside the Austrian embassy in Slovenia.

Ethnic Hungarians living outside Hungary make up the second largest minority in Europe after the Russians: The Hungarian government's so called Benefit law, that favours ethnic Hungarians living outside the national borders has been a source of tension between Hungary and Slovakia in recent years. But now the Hungarian and Slovak foreign ministers have issued a joint statement saying that safeguards can be implemented for the national minorities living in their two countries. It follows a similar agreement between Hungary and Romania last week.

Another unit of Polish soldiers has just left for Iraq to serve in the international stabilization force. Poland has been given the task of re-stabilizing the central- south section of Iraq from the Iranian to the Saudi border. A visit to a military base south of Warsaw, as the servicemen prepare to leave for their mission.

The OSCE - the organisation for security and co-operation in Europe - wants to make sure that foreign-owned media in the region retain their editorial independence. The organisation's press freedom representative, Freimut Duve, has proposed a set of principles to ensure that readers know who their papers belong to, that foreign owners uphold democratic values and openly acknowledge any political affiliation. So far just two media groups have signed up - the Germany's WAZ-group and Orkla Media of Norway. The OSCE's press freedom representative,

Slovenia has made repeated warnings to the Austrian government against allowing the closure of Radio Dva. But just why is Slovenia so concerned about what after all is an Austrian radio station? Natasha Prah, counceller of the Slovene minister for Foreign affairs, gives their response.

The Hungarian government is pretty upbeat about their talks with the Slovaks about their ethnic minorities. But does the Slovak government feel as confident? Oxana Ferjencikova of Radio Slovakia International says reaction to the talks in her country has been more muted