BOSNIA JOINS THE UNION OF THE MEDITERRANEAN

PARIS, France (July 14,2008) - Bosnia was among 43 countries that became members of The Union for the Mediterranean (French: Union pour la Méditerranée) in Paris yesterday.The Bosnian delegation was led by the Bosnian President Haris Silajdzic.

The Union countries will cooperate through concrete projects in the areas of environmental protection, solar energy, civil protection, availability of drinking water and maritime and road transport.Libya was the only country to reject membership in the Union.

Bosnia was among 43 countries that became members of The Union for the Mediterranean (French: Union pour la Méditerranée) in Paris yesterday.The Bosnian delegation was led by the Bosnian President Haris Silajdzic.

The Union countries will cooperate through concrete projects in the areas of environmental protection, solar energy, civil protection, availability of drinking water and maritime and road transport.Libya was the only country to reject membership in the Union.

The Paris summit, a diplomatic success for French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who holds the EU's rotating presidency, may be richer in symbolism than substance, at least to start with.

France and Egypt will be the first countries to co-chair the new body, but details such as the location and powers of its secretariat remain to be resolved, and the Middle East conflicts that bedeviled past EU-Mediterranean cooperation loom large.

The Paris summit brought together heads of state and government of all 27 EU nations and leaders from North Africa, the Middle East and the southeastern Europe.

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi is the only leader who boycotted the summit, while Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan finally agreed to attend despite tension between Turkey and France over Paris' opposition to Turkey's EU membership.

The summit also "brought together" Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Lebanese President Michel Sleiman..

French President Nicolas Sarkozy had a series of bilateral meetings with key leaders on Saturday and Sunday to prepare for the summit. But no such meetings were scheduled between leaders of Israel and Syria, which have technically been at war since 1948.

"The purpose of the summit of the Union for the Mediterranean is that in the Mediterranean, around the Mediterranean, we learn to love each other rather than hate each other and make wars," Sarkozy told reporters after a meeting with Abbas and Olmert.

"The very fact that we are all going to be united in the same room, attending the same summit meeting, is historic," he said.

The Union for the Mediterranean was an idea championed by Sarkozy in his presidential campaign last year, inspired by the Barcelona Process created in 1995.

The union will hold one summit every two years. It will establish a co-presidency made up of an EU nation and a non-EU nation, and a permanent secretariat.

The union will concentrate on regional cooperation projects, including environmental protection in the Mediterranean, the development of solar energy and water management, solutions to increased natural hazards and infrastructure and transport deficits; economic and social development programs and higher education and research programs.
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THE AZIZIJA MOSQUE REOPENED ON SATURDAY IN BOSANSKA KOSTAJNICA

BOSANSKA KOSTAJNICA, Bosnia (July 14,2008) - The Azizija Mosque in Bosanska Kostajnica which was destroyed by the genocidal Serbian fascist aggressor in 1992, was reopened on Saturday.

The mosque was built in 1862 by Sultan Abdul Aziz, and its reopening was set to coincide with the anniversary of its destruction.

Head of the Bosnian Islamic Community Reisu-l-ulema Mustafa Ef. Cerić said at the ceremony that he had mixed feelings, because “it is the fate of the people living in beautiful Bosnia to have great misery and great joy day in and day out”.

Together with Reisu-l-ulema Mustafa Ef. Cerić, many Bosnian Muslims attended the event.

"These two emotions, actually, run our lives. Emotions from Srebrenica, the day before, and the emotions from Bosanska Kostajnica now, illustrate the fate of Bosnia and of all of us living here,” he continued in his address.

The reconstruction of the Azizija Mosque took five years, the cost of the reconstruction was EUR 325,000.
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DISPUTE CONTINUES OVER APPOINTMENT OF NEW BOSNIAN FOREIGN TRADE CHAMBER SECRETARY

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (July 14,2008) - The meeting of the officials of the Foreign Trade Chamber of Bosnia has not taken place as planned so the crisis continues, said Milan Lovric, President of the Chamber.

In other words, the dispute over the appointment of the new Secretary of the Bosnian Foreign Trade Chamber continues and the reports and decisions that are not adopted have been piling up due to lack of quorum.

The Management Board of the Bosnian Foreign Trade Chamber cannot reach an agreement on the position of the General Secretary currently taken by Tarik Dodzic. According to the regulations the Management Board should decide on the rotation of the position in question.

Tarik Dodzic, whose mandate expired on 1 November, 2007, said it has not been done, while Lovric said the Chamber does not have a secretary at the moment.

The Assembly that met on 25 June decided the Members of the Management and Supervisory Board should meet with the President of the Chamber, its two deputies and the leadership of the Assembly in order to reach an agreement that would allow the Bosnian Trade Chamber to continue its activities.
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BOSNIAN BANKS TO INCREASE INTEREST RATES ON ALL LOANS

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (July 14,2008) - Some banks operating in Bosnia have increased their interest rates, after the latest Euribor increase. In June, the European rate was up to 5.1 per cent (compared to 1.9 per cent from March 2004).

Those banks that failed to revise their rates now say they are watching the market closely, and do not exclude the possibility of doing the same subsequently. Depending on the bank, the new rates apply to new loans only or to those that had been signed earlier, as well.

Raiffeisen bank’s PR office said their interest rate would be adjusted for each contract individually, and new rates will apply from August 1. They also said giving an average rate of increase is impossible at the moment. The bank also underlines that interest on mortgage loans would not change, as well as that a revision is unavoidable.

Volksbank increased its rates on July 1, and Nova banka will do the same on September 1. A decision by Hypo Alpe Adria banka is expected in the following days.
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