DODIK: WE WILL DEVELOP PROJECTS WORTH AROUND TWO BILLION DOLLARS TOGETHER WITH OUR FRIENDS FROM ISRAEL

BANJA LUKA, SEPTEMBER 3 /SRNA/ – Republika Srpska and Israel will develop projects in the fields of economic development, technology transfer and other mutually beneficial areas worth around two billion dollars, President Milorad Dodik stated.

Following a meeting between a Republika Srpska delegation and Israeli Minister for Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Amichai Chikli and Israeli Ambassador to BiH Galit Peleg, Dodik told the press that the goal was to obtain the best technologies, develop certain forms of production in Srpska, and jointly create and develop what is needed for the times ahead.

Speaking about friendship, Dodik told Chikli and Peleg that they could count on Republika Srpska.

"Even when you think that we are small and that we do not have enough, count on the fact that we wish," Dodik emphasized.

Dodik said that he follows news from Republika Srpska and Israel with equal interest and that this is how a deep and lasting friendship is maintained, one that does not always have to be repeatedly proven.

"We believed in Israel and the Israeli people even when, perhaps, some among you did not believe in what we were fighting for. We are proud that today’s generation of politicians in Israel and the Jewish people understands and recognizes these developments perfectly well. We are almost in identical enviroment," Dodik said.

According to him, tolerance and understanding in BiH exist only until an opportunity arises for some to reveal their malicious intentions, directed equally toward Israel and Republika Srpska.

"That is why we must stand together unwaveringly. I am glad that this is happening. My last visit to Israel was an honour for my people and the Republic. I met with the president of the Republic, the prime minister, the speaker of Parliament and the foreign minister. In a few days, I will be in your city again to show solidarity with your country and, in this way, convey the message that you have friends," Dodik said.

As for the problems for Israel coming from Brussels, Dodik said that Republika Srpska had been facing them for decades.

"That is why we understand this relations with Iran much better. Everything that is happening to you with them, we have already experienced here. They were a significant part of the Al-Mujahideen unit, and the largest number of commanders of this unit came from Iran's Revolutionary Guard," Dodik said.

He stressed that Republika Srpska would always stand with its friends and that this mutual relationship had also been demonstrated during the recent period.