22 September 2010

Minister of Foreign Affairs of BiH, Sven Alkalaj, met with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Ireland and Cyprus, the Secretary-General of Foreign Affairs of Oman and the First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina Sven Alkalaj, met on September 21, 2010 with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Ireland and Cyprus, the Secretary-General of Foreign Affairs of Oman and the First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam, on the sidelines of 65th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

At the meeting with the First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Pham Binh Minh, it was concluded that bilateral relations between the two countries are good and without open issues, and that there is a potential for a significant cooperation at the multilateral level. First Deputy Minister Pham Binh Minh expressed the need to raise economic cooperation to a higher level by creating a legal framework for the promotion of foreign trade, investment and business cooperation, primarily through the signing of bilateral agreements. He invited Minister Alkalaj to visit Vietnam, which Minister gladly accepted and expressed his hope that the visit will be realized in the near future. Minister Alkalaj suggested organizing business forums, which are proven models for networking opportunities for companies and business initiatives and for familiarization with market characteristics.

Minister Alkalaj and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ireland Micheál Martin TD exchanged information about political and economic situation in Bosnia and Ireland. Minister Alkalaj pointed out that Bosnian economy is showing signs of recovering from the effects of global economic and financial crisis. The Irish Minister stressed that his country strongly supports efforts of Bosnia and Herzegovina to establish a visa-free regime with the states signatories to the Schengen Agreement. He especially emphasized the Irish support for the territorial integrity of BiH, within its internationally recognized borders, as well as support for BiH's membership in the EU.

Secretary-General of Foreign Affairs of the Sultanate Oman, Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi, stressed the need to take advantage of existing opportunities in order to improve bilateral relations, economic cooperation in particular. He added that, through the intensification of contacts, it is possible to identify areas that have the greatest potential for cooperation. He stated that BiH is very active on the international scene, through its work in the Security Council and invited the Minister Alkalaj to visit Oman. Minister Alkalaj said that BiH already has developed cooperation with Gulf countries and expressed his desire to establish such cooperation with Oman as well. Minister expressed his hope that BiH will soon be on the white Schengen list, which is a good reason for the liberalization of visas between Bosnia and Oman, which would result in easier movement of tourists, businessmen and scientists.

At the meeting between Minister Alkalaj and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cyprus, Markos Kyprianou, it was discussed about political and economic situation in both countries. Minister Alkalaj emphasized that Bosnia and Herzegovina needs EU countries' support and understanding regarding our recent submitting of membership application in the EU, and in that sense, he added that BiH relies on support from Cyprus, given that this is a friendly country with which we have good bilateral cooperation. He pointed out that this is an important issue for Bosnia and Herzegovina, in order to avoid lagging behind other countries in the region and to achieve a new dynamic for the reform process. Minister Alkalaj stated the need to harmonize the details and sign the relevant agreements in order to create a legal framework for more intensive economic cooperation between the two countries. Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kyprianou, stressed that BiH can count on the support of his country and pointed out that Cyprus strongly supports the integrity of BiH and its further progress in the process of Euro-Atlantic integrations.