The planned commissioning of the new Gradiška border crossing has once again been called into question after the Management Board of the Indirect Taxation Administration of BiH failed to adopt the necessary amendments to the Rulebook on Internal Organization.
At a session held today, members of the Management Board considered amendments to the act that is a prerequisite for the deployment of customs officers to the newly built crossing. However, despite the fact that all the requests previously put forward by the Management Board member Zijad Krnjić were included in the agenda, he again withheld his consent, which meant that the decision remained unadopted.
Minister of Finance and Treasury in the Council of Ministers of BiH Srđan Amidžić said that Krnjić did not vote for the Rulebook on Systematization “because the proposal on the distribution of VAT revenues and the settlement according to which the RS should pay the FBiH around 120 million BAM did not pass”.
“You can ask for the transcript and you will hear that Krnjić said that people are still waiting in lines at the old crossing and that he does not see any problem with that. Is this a message about coexistence in BiH? If the FBiH government disagrees with Krnjić, let him remove him and appoint someone who will support this just as the RS supports the reconstruction and opening of the crossings located on the territory of the FBiH,” said Amidžić.
He assessed that he did not accept the other side’s blackmail to the detriment of all citizens in BiH.
“Let Krnjić explain whether drivers from the FBiH will wait in long lines in Gradiška,” said Amidžić.
He added that tomorrow, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković should also come to the opening ceremony of the crossing near Gradiška, while on the other hand, “one man is holding all citizens of BiH captive”.
Today’s agenda also included a decision on the distribution of funds from tolls for highways and roads, but there was no support from the FBiH for this decision until the members of the Board of Directors from the Republika Srpska supported the decisions on settlements between the entities for the last three years. The Board of Directors also did not adopt the decision on determining the temporary coefficients for the distribution of funds from the single account for the period October – December 2025, the cabinet of Minister Srđan Amidžić announced.
The opening of the Gradiška Border Crossing has been announced for tomorrow, December 11, with a ceremonial ceremony, but it is certain that the crossing will not be operational immediately if administrative obstacles are not removed.
The amendments to the Rules represent a technical and formal step that enables the systematization of new jobs, i.e. the employment and distribution of customs officers necessary for the operation of the new crossing. Without this decision, despite the completed infrastructure, Gradiška cannot start regular traffic.
