Talha Ozturk
05 May 2021•Update: 05 May 2021
BELGRADE, Serbia
Bosnia and Herzegovina's foreign minister described relations with Turkey as "rich, intensive and constantly improving."
Bisera Turkovic met with her Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu on Wednesday in the capital Sarajevo.
Addressing a joint news conference after the meeting, Turkovic thanked Turkey for helping Bosnia and Herzegovina in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, especially for the shipment of vaccines.
"We all face an unprecedented challenge, and only friends respond in trouble. The relations between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Turkey are rich, intensive, and are also constantly improving," said Turkovic.
She added that Bosnia's Council of Ministers has decided to ratify the agreement with Turkey on cooperation in infrastructure and construction projects.
"We are now entering the phase of realization of major joint projects, among which one of the most important is the construction of the Sarajevo-Belgrade highway with the support of the Turkish government," said Turkovic.
"We believe that Turkey has a stabilizing and very constructive role in the region. Also, we believe that there is no stability and progress of the entire region without the progress and stability of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
"Turkey unequivocally supports not only the territorial integrity of Bosnia but also our path to membership in the Euro-Atlantic community. Turkey is one of our most important allies when it comes to cooperation with NATO," Turkovic said.
She said the economy topped the agenda of the talks. Other areas included: security, migration and culture.
Cavusoglu, for his part, said that the meeting was focused on how to enhance bilateral relations further.
"I would like to say in particular that, as always, we will continue to support Bosnia and Herzegovina's fight against COVID-19 in the upcoming period. Our bilateral trade volume has not decreased despite the pandemic. but there is still a trade deficit in favor of Turkey. We will continue to work together to increase trade and balance it," he said.
The Turkish foreign minister added that Turkey will always continue to stand by Bosnia and Herzegovina and its people without discrimination.
"We have provided vaccines as much as we can, our national vaccines will be launched soon. We will continue to support friendly and brotherly Bosnia and Herzegovina," said Cavusoglu.
