Members of the BiH PA Delegation welcomed by prince Selman of Saudi Arabia

The Crown Prince, and Defence Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, His Majesty Prince Selman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, today welcomed the BiH PA Delegation on their official visit to this friendly country. The Delegation is headed by Dr Božo Ljubić, Speaker of the House of Representatives and Head of the Delegation, Dr Denis Bećirović, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr Ognjen Tadić, Deputy Speaker of the House of Peoples, and Halid Genjac, Chair of the Bosniac People Caucus in the House of Peoples.

Dr Ljubić paid his respects and expressed his gratitude to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the support and assistance given to BiH since the war, not only humanitarian assistance, but also loans for the reconstruction of destroyed buildings and the construction of transport, education, and health infrastructure. In response, Prince Selman stated that he sees his role in that process as his most important life mission.

Moreover, the host of today’s meeting was interested in BiH’s internal situation, in its relations with its neighbours, and especially in the process of EU accession. Dr Ljubić informed Prince Selman that, in spite of the tough legacy inherited from the past, the three constituent peoples represented in this century as well, are determined to make BiH a stable country. He stated that relations in the region are very good as our neighbours support the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of BiH.

When it comes to EU accession, Dr Ljubić stated that with Croatia’s accession on 1 July, the EU will share a 1000 kilometre border with BiH, which will definitely be both a motivation and an opportunity for the country to progress towards this large European association.

Crown Prince Selman viewed EU membership as a natural path for BiH, due to its significant position in Central and Eastern Europe, and was also interested in timeframes for BiH’s EU accession. Dr Ljubić emphasized the fact that there is BiH-wide consensus on entering the EU, thanks to which joining can be expected in the near future. He also added that this opens up significant economic opportunities for those countries that are seen as friendly, since BiH is an excellent market for foreign investors in numerous spheres, especially infrastructure development, hydro-electric power, organic food production, tourism, etc. According to Dr Ljubić, it is important to include the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in these processes, due to its great investment potential.

The interlocutors agreed that the executive power of both of these friendly States has a task ahead of them to cement political relations and turn them into economic projects, which will further improve political relations. Therefore, as stated today, bilateral relations and co-operation on the multilateral agenda ought to be continued.

Dr Ljubić stated that there should be united efforts to fight every form of extremism whereupon Prince Selman emphasized that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia greatly contributes to that, not only in practical terms, but also through the work of the “King Abdullah” Centre for Inter-religious and Inter-cultural dialogue in Vienna.

In the course of this official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the BiH PA Delegation will also meet with the second highest officials, as well as with the Group of friendship for Bosnia and Herzegovina, within the Saudi-Arabian Consultative Assembly. (end)