Vucic confirms he'll travel to Tirana in late May

Source: Tanjug

SARAJEVO -- Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said while visiting Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, on Wednesday that he would travel to Albania on May 27.

Vucic and members of the Bosnian presidency (Tanjug)

He said his trip will come "because it is important to improve relations in the region and invest in peace and stability."
"It is important to invest in peace and stability in the region for each of our countries so that what happened in Kumanovo does not happen to us," he said addressing a joint news conference with Chairman of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Council of Ministers Denis Zvizdic.

Vucic said that "situations like that in Kumanovo" - where eight Macedonian police officers and 14 Albanian terrorists died in clashes last weekend - must be prevented, and that "only through peace and cooperation all countries in the region can make progress.

Vucic and Zvizdic discussed "bilateral cooperation and joint activities of Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina activities in third markets," Tanjug reported, and added that Vucic said on the occasion that "best relations with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Bosniaks (Muslims) are in Serbia's interest."

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Vucic noted that the topic of the discussion was establishing a better climate and a more successful cooperation between the two countries.

"We discussed cooperation in the fields of the defense industry and tourism, as well as security issues, the fight against terrorism and solving the backlog of disagreements between Serbs and Bosniaks," Vucic noted, adding that an agreement was made for the governments of the two countries to hold a joint session in the second half of the year to discuss a number of bilateral agreements.

The security and stability of the Western Balkans depend on good, strategically organised relations between Serbs and Bosniaks, Vucic said.

The atmosphere between us is good, but it must be even better and we must create genuine trust - having the best relations with Bosniaks is in Serbia's interest, Vucic said.

During the day, the Serbian prime minister also met with members of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency.

While in Sarajevo, Vucic also spoke with Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia-Herzegovina Mladen Bosic, with whom he agreed that "stability and security in the region is a priority."

According to a statement from the Bosnia-Herzegovina Parliamentary Assembly, Vucic and Bosic discussed the current political situation in the region and ways to resolve accumulated problems, the Fena news agency reported.

It was noted that political stability and security in the region was a priority and that more attention needed to be paid to economic development, economic cooperation and creation of new jobs in the coming period, the release said, adding that was necessary to intensify Serbia’s cooperation with the Serb Republic and Bosnia-Herzegovina, especially in the economic and business spheres.

"Stupid people"

(Tanjug)

Addressing a business forum in Sarajevo earlier in the day, Aleksandar Vucic said that "there are still stupid people who don't think that peoples of the region must live together and have a future together."

He spoke in favor of "creating a Western Balkans business neighborhood without borders, stressing Serbia's readiness to resolve all outstanding issues with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Bosniaks," Tanjug reported.

The prime minister said that "the region could attract many more investors as a unified market, but it required additional effort and a strategic dialogue."

“Serbia is ready to talk about all the serious issues with our friends from Bosnia and Bosniaks. We are ready both to open and to close the difficult topics because we have to think about a common future for our nations,” Vucic said at the opening of the Sarajevo Business Forum 2015.

"We need to create in the region a business neighborhood without borders, and political leaders need to lead a long-term strategic dialogue in order to create the best possible business and economic situation," said the Serbian prime minister.

“We have to take the responsibility into our own hands. We have to take care of the future of our citizens,” said Vucic.

The business forum, held under the slogan "One Region, One Economy", brought together around 900 participants, including political leaders, businessmen and bankers from the region and around the world.