Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik and Serbian President Boris Tadic opened on Wednesday a section of the Banja Luka-Gradiska highway in RS, which will contribute to building stronger ties between the Serbian entity in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia, and economic strengthening of the region.
The section opened for traffic is 26.5 kilometers long, and represents the largest individual infrastructural project in RS’s history.
According to Dodik, the Banja Luka-Gradiska highway is a communication and civilization step forward for RS, and a dream come true for many of its citizens.
“I am a happy man today, because an important event is behind us. Let’s be happy because we have outdone ourselves,” Dodik said.
Dodik said that RS will continue investing in infrastructure, because there is no economic future for RS without traffic connections with Serbia and Croatia.
President Tadic pointed out that the completion of the first large highway section in RS is very important from both a symbolic and functional aspect, as it will encourage the region’s development and enable the creation of new jobs, which are the most important issue for any government at the time of crisis.
Tadic said that, apart from the by-pass around Croatia, Serbia wants to make direct infrastructural connections with RS near Bijeljina and Visegrad.
Tadic expressed expectation that a section of the highway currently under construction in Central Serbia will in five years reach the border with BiH near Visegrad.
Despite the global crisis, we are trying to build future for the following generations, Tadic said.
RS Prime Minister Aleksandar Dzombic and Minister of Transport and Communications Nedeljko Cubrilovic addressed a large number of citizens who attended the oficial opening of the highway section.
They announced that the construction of the Banja Luka-Doboj highway will begin in 2012, and that a contractor will soon be selected for the construction of a new bridge on the Sava River, which will connect RS with Croatia and the Belgrade-Zagreb highway.
Director Emir Kusturica also addressed the attendees, pointing out that RS is the best model for the creation of modern European regions in the Balkans, because it unifies modern political ideas and national identity.
During his stay in Banja Luka, Serbian President Boris Tadic will confer with RS President Milorad Dodik, and later attend the Best Personality event organized by the Banja Luka-based daily Nezavisne novine.
Tadic, Dodik back strong cooperation during crisis
Serbian President Boris Tadic and his Republika Srpska (RS) counterpart Milorad Dodik underscored on Wednesday the importance of further strengthening of relations between Belgrade and Banja Luka, and pointed out that both Serbia and RS need to be prepared to tackle the new wave of crisis using their internal resources as much as possible.
After the meeting in Banja Luka, Tadic stated that development of cooperation in areas such as energy or agriculture bears particular importance because these are the sectors where investments pay off quickly, thus ensuring accelerated development.
The new wave of crisis will be exceptionally tough and we have to be prepared for the fact that certain jobs will be called into question, Tadic explained and added that this is the reason why the Serbia and RS need to revise their internal sources.
The two presidents underscored the importance which reinforcement of traffic ties between Serbia and RS, and all other ties between Serbs on both sides of the Drina River, has for economic development.
Tadic and Dodik agreed that after the Wednesday opening of the Banja Luka-Gradiska motorway section, the next step should be comprised in setting up traffic ties at Bijeljina and Visegrad.
When it comes to political relations, Tadic said that Serbia’s stands have not changed and that Belgrade considers as acceptable all agreements reached between representatives of two entities and three nations in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH).
Dodik expressed satisfaction with the current concept Europe is promoting, which is embodied in the demand for all levels of BiH government to be included in the process of European integration which RS was calling for from the very start.
We want to pull out all stops on the EU path, but the issue of constitutional changes keeps coming up, Dodik said.
Tadic and Dodik announced that the governments and presidents of Serbia and RS will soon stage a meeting at which they would discuss economic cooperation, strengthening cultural ties and the possibility of cooperation within the project of the institute honouring Ivo Andric in Visegrad.
Source emg.rs
