Former Croatian PM pleads not guilty to corruption charges

Former Croatian prime minister Ivo Sanader pleaded not guilty today to charges that he and his ex-ruling party siphoned nearly €10m in public funds received from illegal donations.

The corruption scandal is the biggest since Croatia became an independent state in 1991. It is the first trial involving a major party, the Croatian Democratic Union, which was ousted from power in December elections mostly because of graft allegations.