Serbian FM says Bosnia has true friend in Serbia

SARAJEVO Serbian Foreign Minister Ivan Mrkic has said that Bosnia-Herzegovina holds a special place among Serbia's priorities. This is true as Bosnia is an immediate neighbor and a country with which Serbia has many traditional, historical and cultural ties, he explained. Serbian FM says Bosnia has true friend in Serbia "We are a true friend of yours, who supports you and who wants to further deepen the friendly relations it has with you,” Mrkic told Dnevni Avaz, a Sarajevo-based daily, during his first official visit to Bosnia Thursday. He categorically rejected the view that his visit to Sarajevo was a “compensation” for the visit of Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic and Prime Minister Ivica Dacic to the Serb Republic (RS) on Wednesday. The Serbian foreign minister explained that he and his Bosnia counterpart Zlatko Lagumdzija had had his visit arranged a long time before, adding that he did not know Nikolic's visit to Banja Luka had been arranged. Mrkic said that the relations between Serbia and Bosnia were generally good and friendly, with considerable prospects for their further development, adding that Serbia was not provoking the separation of the Serb entity (RS) from Bosnia, because "it knew what that would mean". Commenting on Serbia's investment in Bosnia, Mrkic said that Serbia was interested in the construction of a highway leading to Sarajevo and that the two countries would both benefit from a modernization of the Sabac-Zvornik-Sarajevo railway. “Possibilities for further cooperation are also there in the fields of energy, automotive and defense industry, power industry equipment, processing of fruit and vegetables, meat and milk, and tourism,” said Mrkic. When it comes to the fight against organized crime, he said that security and police services of the countries in the region were closely cooperating, which was of great importance considering the dangers of organized crime. Mrkic also stressed the need for cooperation in the fight against false asylum seekers, faced by certain countries in the region, as the problem could put the right of their citizens to travel freely in the EU in jeopardy. Ivan Mrkic (Tanjug, file) Tanjug

Serbian FM says Bosnia has true friend in Serbia

"We are a true friend of yours, who supports you and who wants to further deepen the friendly relations it has with you,” Mrkić told Dnevni Avaz, a Sarajevo-based daily, during his first official visit to Bosnia Thursday.

He categorically rejected the view that his visit to Sarajevo was a “compensation” for the visit of Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić and Prime Minister Ivica Dačić to the Serb Republic (RS) on Wednesday.

The Serbian foreign minister explained that he and his Bosnia counterpart Zlatko Lagumdžija had had his visit arranged a long time before, adding that he did not know Nikolić's visit to Banja Luka had been arranged.

Mrkić said that the relations between Serbia and Bosnia were generally good and friendly, with considerable prospects for their further development, adding that Serbia was not provoking the separation of the Serb entity (RS) from Bosnia, because "it knew what that would mean".

Commenting on Serbia's investment in Bosnia, Mrkić said that Serbia was interested in the construction of a highway leading to Sarajevo and that the two countries would both benefit from a modernization of the Šabac-Zvornik-Sarajevo railway.

“Possibilities for further cooperation are also there in the fields of energy, automotive and defense industry, power industry equipment, processing of fruit and vegetables, meat and milk, and tourism,” said Mrkić.

When it comes to the fight against organized crime, he said that security and police services of the countries in the region were closely cooperating, which was of great importance considering the dangers of organized crime.

Mrkić also stressed the need for cooperation in the fight against false asylum seekers, faced by certain countries in the region, as the problem could put the right of their citizens to travel freely in the EU in jeopardy.