On Monday, a press conference by international observers of Bulgaria's 45th National Assembly elections was held in Sofia. The use of state resources by the ruling GERB party in the election campaign and limited media coverage of all candidates were among the conclusions made by international observers of the parliamentary vote on Sunday, Bulgarian National Radio reported.

Germany's Helga Schmid has been announced as the new secretary general of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). Her appointment comes after nearly half a year of disagreements on the matter between the member countries, mostly between the West and Russia. The term of the outgoing secretary general, Swiss diplomat Thomas Greminger, ended back in July.

The parliament of Belarus on Friday set 9 August as the date for the country's next presidential election, news wires reported. The 65-year-old President Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled the ex-Soviet nation of 9.5 million since 1994, announced last year that he will run for another mandate. It  will be his sixth consecutive term in office.

The foreign ministers of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine on Thursday discussed advancing peace in east Ukraine, but achieved little as progress is also hampered by the coronavirus restrictions, observers noted.

Serbia's government decided to revoke a decree giving it control over information on the coronavirus outbreak, following protests and the detention of a journalist for writing about a major hospital lacked protective gear and properly trained staff, news wires reported. PM Ana Brnabic said the decree, enforced on Saturday, would be revoked on Thursday "so not a shadow could be cast on our work."

Parliamentary polls in Belarus lacked respect for democracy and denied basic freedoms to voters and candidates, international vote observers said on Monday, after the opposition failed to win a single seat, news wires reported.