Bosnia and Herzegovina ministers discuss Open Balkans

Sta a Ko arac, the Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of BiH, met today with the Minister of Internal and External Trade of Serbia, Tomislav Momirovi, who he said discussed strengthening cooperation and improving foreign trade exchange.

The interlocutors exchanged opinions on the Open Balkans, where it was said that this regional initiative increased the volume of trade between the member countries by almost 30 percent.

In the next month, Ko arac said that he will initiate the holding of a conference on Open Balkans in Sarajevo.

We have agreed to host a conference in Sarajevo to which we will invite relevant ministers from Serbia, North Macedonia and Albania. Our common objective is to discuss the prospects and advantages of the Open Balkans with the representatives of the chamber system in Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr Ko arac said on condition of anonymity.

He reaffirmed the commitment of Republika Srpska institutions on the need for regional connection and consolidation of cooperation.

Ko arac, the chairman of the Republika Srpska and its representatives at the joint level, are proponents of BiH joining the Open Balkans mainly because of the benefits for the domestic economic secto, Ko arac said.

Today businessmen from the Republika Srpska and the Federation of BiH are in an unequal position compared to their colleagues from the region, he said.

While the businessmen of the member countries of the Open Balkans have an unimpeded flow of goods at the borders, our businessmen waste a lot of time waiting at the border crossings, which has a negative impact on the quality of the product and jeopardizes the delivery time, Ko arac said.

Ministers Ko arac and Momirovi stressed the importance of connecting border crossings between Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The common position is that we must speed up the procedures when it comes to the integration of the Ra a and Vardi te border crossings, which would significantly contribute to the increase in foreign trade, faster flow of goods and additional connectivity in the tourism sector, said Ko arac, Minister of Foreign Trade and economic relations of BiH.