News in English     | 04.02.2018. 19:10 |

Koç: Talks on feasibility study for Sarajevo-Belgrade motorway to begin soon

FENA Senka Trgovčević

SARAJEVO, February 4 (FENA) - Representatives of the competent institutions for road construction from Turkey will begin simultaneous talks with BiH and Serbian authorities next week to analyze the construction of the proposed Sarajevo-Belgrade motorway routes and the feasibility studies, confirmed in an interview with FENA the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to BiH Haldun Koç, who on this occasion spoke about the "Olive Branch" operation launched by the Turkish Armed Forces on January 20 with the goal of neutralizing YPG / PYD / PKK and ISIS terrorists in the Syrian border region of Afrin.

He expressed satisfaction with the process of talks on the construction of the Sarajevo-Belgrade motorway, as the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić and a member of the BiH Presidency Bakir Izetbegović at their meeting, have agreed to build the motorway in both of the proposed directions, via Tuzla and via Višegrad.

“Various statements have been heard in the past year regarding this project. There were doubts about what route will be chosen between Sarajevo and Belgrade. In this regard, Turkey has repeatedly noted that, although this is a major economic project, it has a social importance as well, but also a political one, because it will certainly contribute to the stability of Serbia and BiH,” said Koç.

Since the beginning of the talks on the construction of the motorway, he stressed that Turkey has never been part of the discussions, but on the contrary, it has always and at all levels, including the highest ones, underlined its determination to support such a project.

“In this sense, Turkey is pleased to be part of this project one day. This was discussed during the recent official visit of the President of Turkey to Serbia, as well as at the working meeting of Erdogan with Vučić and Izetbegović. On this occasion, Erdogan wanted to consider what can be done specifically, and it is very positive that it was concluded that both proposed routes should be built” said Koç.

Answering the question how Turkey plans to financially support the project, he said that at this moment it is not possible to say this because all analyses need to be done to determine the technical details of the road section, from the number of tunnels to the number of bridges and everything else that makes a motorway.

Further on Koç pointed out that all Turkish citizens fully support the "Olive Branch" operation and believe that it will be successful.

“Turkey is struggling with a growing number of terrorist organizations that threaten its security. Unfortunately, threats to Turkey come from the border it shares with Syria, and they have not ceased after last year's successful operation codenamed “Shield of Euphrates”. In the northwestern region of Syria known as Afrin, the terrorist organizations PKK, YPG, PYD, in cooperation with ISIS, are continuing their activities and endangering Turkey's security. These organizations conducted nearly 700 intrusions and terrorist attacks on Turkish border towns,” explained Koç.

He says that all terrorist activities in the border area endanger the territorial integrity of Syria and Turkey itself.

“That is why the goal of the "Olive Branch" operation is to preserve the integrity of the borders and the security of Turkey, neutralize the terrorists in Afrin, and save the friendly and fraternal people from terror. The operation is conducted on the basis of respecting Article 51 of the UN Charter and other resolutions and decisions of the United Nations regarding the fight against terrorism. Also, the operation is based on a legitimate right to defense respecting the borders of neighboring countries, the territorial integrity of Syria,” emphasized Koç.

After the termination of the neutralization of terrorists that have occupied the territories, the goal is "to restore power to those it belongs to - local government and the population."

“Turkey, as a good neighbor, provided refuge to the people in distress who crossed the border from Syria and provided accommodation to more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees. Thus, during the "Olive Branch" operation, we are taking care of as many people as possible by creating living conditions good enough in case they want to return to their homes,” said Koç.

Having announced Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to the Vatican, he said that it is of utmost importance that he meets with the Head of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Francis, and discusses bilateral and regional issues.

After an official visit to the Vatican, Erdogan will meet with his Italian counterpart, Sergio Mattarello, in Rome, and then with the Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni.

Watch http://fena.ba/video/1419

Download https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1vvGhEyKqD56tVfUYzYUKIOOahYg22Yun?usp=sharing

(FENA) S. R.

Vezane vijesti

Shortage of medicines registered on the BiH market, but adequate substitutes are offered

Growth of foreign investments in BiH, mostly in metal processing industry, tourism and mining

Croatian Foreign Minister Grlić Radman on an official visit to BiH on Friday

Promo

M:tel: Savršena kombinacija – Huawei telefon i pametni sat s popustom

M:tel: Stiglo nam je Proljeće!

Predstava 'Kako sam se nadala dobro se nisam udala' u BKC Sarajevo