After the meeting with Milorad Dodik, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Peter Szijjarto, stated that his country is in favor of speeding up the process of bringing the countries of the Western Balkans closer to the European Union (EU) and will continue to support farmers in this entity, despite announcements of a reduction in support for development programs.
In addition to Dodik, Szijjarto met yesterday in Banja Luka with the Prime Minister of the Republika Srpska (RS) Radovan Viskovic and member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) Zeljka Cvijanovic, where they discussed BiH’s European path, as well as economic cooperation between Hungary and RS.
Szijjarto stated that Hungary will soon take over the Presidency of the European Union (EU) and one of its priorities will be to speed up the process of rapprochement of the Western Balkans, that is, the process of EU enlargement, as well as that this country opposes putting any politician from the Western Balkans on the list of sanctions.
“The EU needs inspiration, it needs fresh and new energy, and I think that the Western Balkans is a region that can provide that. We believe that it is in everyone’s interest to speed up the process of integration into the EU in this part of the world,” said Szijjarto after the meeting and added that for a successful integration path, it is necessary that the EU does not blackmail and frighten the countries of the Western Balkans, but respects them.
According to him, Hungary opposes the reduction of funds intended for the support of development programs in the Western Balkan region, because in this way damage is caused to the people who live here.
“As part of the responsible neighborhood policy, we continue to provide support for the agricultural development of RS. The farmers and agriculture of RS, as well as Hungary, will benefit, since it is a program that foresees the possibility of purchasing agricultural equipment and machines produced in Hungary,” stated the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary.
He also stated that more than 1.700 applicants had applied for the tender and that about 6.5 billion forints, or about 32 million BAM, had been earmarked for this purpose, and these funds would be replenished if necessary.
Dodik said that he also discussed with Szijjarto about other economic topics, such as the exploitation of ores, and that the date of the visit of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, whom he called a great friend, to the RS was agreed upon.
“Then we will operationalize it, and maybe even sign some contracts. We will never forget Hungary for helping the RS to get through that challenging year more easily in such a difficult year, as last year was for them and for us,” Dodik pointed out.
Moreover, Dodik also said that he was pleased by the fact that Hungary will soon take over the presidency of the EU and that the RS is committed to the European path.
“We want two things to be seen here – that the RS is seen on that path, together with its powers and, on the other hand, that the coordination mechanism within BiH and the constitutional position that BiH has are respected”, stated Dodik and added that he is in favor of solving all 14 problems at the same time, and not dealing with issues separately.
“Furthermore, we informed the minister of our position regarding NATO. Our policy is not to join NATO for well-known reasons related to the past of our relations,” concluded Dodik, Detektor reports.
E.Dz.
