SILENT OBSTRUCTION FROM FBiH REGARDING SUSPENSION OF CUSTOMS DUTIES ON GOODS FROM THE US

SARAJEVO, JUNE 2 /SRNA/ – The Minister of Finance and Treasury in the Council of Ministers Srđan Amidžić believes there is a silent obstruction coming from the Federation of BiH regarding the temporary suspension of customs duties on goods from the United States and called on officials from that entity to publicly state their position instead of hiding behind procedures.

"With some incoherent explanations, we still don’t have an opinion from the Management Board /MB/ of the Indirect Taxation Authority /ITA/ of BiH. I want to inform you that I will convene MB ITA sessions every day until colleagues from FBiH come out and say that they don’t want cooperation with the US and don’t want to participate in these globally relevant negotiations," Amidžić told reporters in Sarajevo.

He called on his colleagues from FBiH that, if that is their political stance, they should stop wasting everyone’s time and declare it openly, rather than hiding behind procedures.

"I support the position of /Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations Staša/ Košarac that the decision on temporarily suspending customs duties is a good starting point for bilateral negotiations in the context of international trade relations, particularly in light of the talks the US has initiated with countries around the world, and that BiH should approach the issue in this way," said Amidžić.

Commenting on today’s session of the Council of Ministers, Amidžić said that although he and Košarac are not "in love" with BiH, they certainly respect the responsibilities assigned to them.

"Today, as on many occasions before, not a single Bosniak colleague attended the session of the Council of Ministers. The next session is scheduled for /Thursday/ June 12," Amidžić said.

He noted that it is more likely to see /Justice and Order MP/ Nebojša Vukanović at Council of Ministers sessions than the Ministers of Foreign Affairs Elmedin Konaković and Defense Zukan Helez.

"Seeing the two of them together is nearly impossible. For them, the Council of Ministers is just a place to hold a press conference afterward. That’s how they perceive BiH and the Council of Ministers itself," Amidžić pointed out.

He believes that representatives from Republika Srpska should actually take notes from Konaković and Helez on how to behave to demonstrate what BiH is truly like.