LOCAL PRESS

 

Talks on sending Serbian Armed Forces’ medical teams to missions in Africa (Tanjug)

State secretary at the Serbian Ministry of Defense Zoran Djordjevic conferred on Friday with UN Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Edmond Mulet about Serbia’s engagement in UN-mandated peacekeeping missions. Mulet commended members of the Serbian Armed Forces (SAF) engaged in international missions as highly professional, well trained and well equipped, which he witnessed first-hand. According to the Defense Ministry’s website, 205 SAF troops are participating in six UN peacekeeping missions and 9 more are engaged in two multinational operations of the EU. Negotiations are underway with relevant UN and EU services on the deployment of SAF medical teams to the UN mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) and to the EU missions in the Central African Republic and Mali (EUFOR RCA and EUTM Mali). Serbian Defense Ministry and SAF are ready to raise the level of engagement in Lebanon (UNIFIL), as part of the Italian contingent. The regional conference of contributors of troops to UN peacekeeping operations, to be held in Belgrade in late October, will be a chance to consider new modalities for participation in these missions, Defense Ministry's website reads. Djordjevic thanked Mulet for UN’s assistance and prompt involvement in relief operations during the recent floods in Serbia and expressed hope that the cooperation will continue.
Vucic: It was important for the Serbs to take part in elections (RTS)

“The participation of Serbs in the parliamentary elections for interim institutions in Kosovo and Metohija was important and urging them to vote was an intelligent decision,” Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic told a press conference. “The turnout was low, but the turnout in Albanian-populated areas was also unexpectedly low, which is an indication of other things - that the number of people registered is higher than the number of those who actually live in the territory,” Vucic said, adding that all further discussions will always be aimed at protecting Serbian national interests. “The Kosovo Assembly cannot be constituted without the Serbs, so this will be discussed and one should see how things stand. It seems that some people were taking much away from the Serbs and changed the rules seven days before the elections, which does not happen anywhere in the world. Regardless of that, I think that we had made an intelligent decision by calling on our compatriots to go to the elections, because otherwise we would have even been left without this opportunity to make an influence in any serious way and help our fellow citizens who live in Kosovo and Metohija,” said Vucic.

 

Djuric congratulates Kosovo Serbs on high responsibility (Novosti)

Thaqi’s Democratic Party of Kosovo is ahead of a victory, and the Serbs will not have additional mandates in the Kosovo Assembly apart from the ten guaranteed. The political struggle for the mandates has passed in the shadow of retailoring of election rules and discriminatory decisions of the Pristina authorities towards the Serbs. “I congratulate all Serb residents in Kosovo and Metohija on the demonstrated high responsibility and, despite the impossible obstacles from Pristina, on turning out for the elections that are opening a clear perspective for the formation of the Union of Serb Municipalities,” the Head of the government Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric said in Kosovska Mitrovica. He assessed that the turnout of the Serbs is clear proof of their commitment and responsibility to their state and people: “I am free to say that today we have a much better situation when it comes to the future of political processes in Kosovo and Metohija. We fought for this with means that used to be inherent of others. I expect soon that we will open talks on the disputable decisions of the Central Election Commission that were passed right before the elections,” said Djuric. The Coordinator of the Management Team for the formation of the Union of Serb Municipalities Ljubomir Maric called the people to support their government in Belgrade: “By winning as many as possible provincial mandates, we would be in a situation that no decision ever will be made without us.”

 

Drecun: Serbs listened to government’s call (RTS)

The Chairperson of the parliament Committee for Kosovo and Metohija Milovan Drecun has stated that the turnout of 53,000 Serbs for the early parliamentary elections in Kosovo and Metohija shows that they listened to the call of the Serbian Government and the government will have full capacity in the following period to continue the process of normalization of relations and to represent the interests of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija. Drecun told the morning broadcast of Radio and Television of Serbia (RTS) that such a turnout was expected and that the turnout was lower in northern Kosovo, but, nevertheless, turnout in two municipalities has improved compared to the local elections. “On the other side, once the distribution of mandates is completed, the expectation is that there will be attempts, in agreement with the international community, for Pristina distribute these mandates without any discriminatory behavior towards the Serbs and attempt to reduce the election results,” said Drecun. The MPs will have an important task in the following period to coordinate their activities with the Serbian government as they are bind by the significant turnout of the Serbs, assessed Drecun. He opined that the significance of the activities of future MPs has not been well understood in northern Kosovo, because if the foundation of the policy in the following period is placed on the formation of the Union of Serb Municipalities stemming from the Brussels agreement, then strong support is needed from the Serb deputies in the Kosovo Assembly, since the creation of a legislative framework that is necessary in Kosovo and Metohija will depend on them. “The Serbs should take part as much as possible in all interim self-government institutions not in order to recognize some sort of self-declared so-called state in Kosovo and Metohija, but in order to have a mechanism through which we will fight with legally-democratic means for improving our own position, thus the return of the Serbian state to Kosovo and Metohija,” said Drecun. He assessed that turnout should have and must have been better as regards the Serbs, but that a turnout of 53,000 people was expected in the more optimistic options, and that it will be interesting to see the data of how many votes the Serb list received. “There must be coordinated activities among the Serb MPs, i.e. among Serb lists and the Serbian government,” said Drecun. Asked about the irregularities at the elections where the Serbs in Klina, Istok and Pec couldn’t vote with Serbian documents, Drecun said that elections should be repeated in places where there were irregularities and the Serbs were unable to vote. He says that he expected a higher turnout of Albanians than 43 percent and that it can be expected for the Serbs to receive more than the 10 guaranteed mandates. Asked about the 38.5 million Euros promised by Brussels, even though no single Euro has arrived in northern Kosovo, and the announcements that the money for projects in northern Kosovo could arrive as late as in November and about possible political conditioning by Brussels, Drecun says that he doesn’t believe that the EU will use this money as means of political blackmail and that the EU is bureaucratized and slow in passing decisions when it needs to grant funds.

 

Jablanovic: 52.000 Serbs voted at Kosovo elections (Tanjug)

The leader of the Serb list Aleksandar Jablanovic has stated that 52,000 Serbs voted at the early parliamentary elections, noting that more than 15,000 voted in northern Kosovo and Metohija. Jablanovic told Tanjug that 11,330 votes belong to the displaced of the total number of votes. The right to vote was given to 130,000 Serbs, while the total number of 1,782,454 was registered. According to the Central Election Commission, 747,672 people used their right to vote, or 43.16 percent. The Serb list announced that 41.43 percent of the voters turned out in Gracanica, 45.88 in Ranilug, 51.74 percent in Klokot, 48.74 percent in Strpce, 35.26 percent in Novo Brdo, 49.19 in Partes, 17.62 percent in Kosovska Mitrovica, 23.24 percent in Zvecan, 24.82 percent in Leposavic and 36.14 percent in Zubin Potok.

 

Serbia might join seven new UN peacekeeping missions (Tanjug)

If the parliament approves, Serbian Army members might be engaged in seven new UN peacekeeping missions and the EU Mission for training security forces in Mali. The new engagements should be in the missions in Western Sahara, Mali, Kashmir, South Sudan and Sudan. Elaborating this proposal to the parliament Committee for Defense and Interior Affairs, Colonel Milan Krunikovac explained that the adoption of the annual plan for the Serbian Army and other defense forces in multi-national operations in 2014 and the draft decision on participation of Serbian Army members in multi-national operations in 2014 will shorten the time of response according to UN or EU requests. He stressed that the adoption of these laws would not imply automatic engagement, but putting at disposal of resources without the obligation to be engaged. When it comes to the engagement of Serbian Army members abroad, a significant change will be increasing capacities in some missions, so an infantry unit would replace a platoon in the peacekeeping mission in Lebanon. Colonel Krunikovac said in response to MP questions that the safety of Serbian Army members was not endangered in peacekeeping operations last year and specified that Serbia set aside 819 million Dinars for engagement in multi-national operations, while the UN participates with around 265 million.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Vucic to meet Dodik in Belgrade (Srna)

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic announced that he will meet officially with the Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik in Belgrade on Wednesday. He pointed out that on 13 June, within preparations for the 100^th anniversary of the beginning of World War I, Dodik and he will hold a working meeting with Serbian First Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dacic, Serbian Minister of Culture Ivan Tasovac and film director Emir Kusturica.

 

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

 

Snap parliamentary vote in Kosovo tests EU efforts to help Balkan state normalize Serbia ties (AP, by Sylejman Klokoqi, 8 June 2014)
PRISTINA, Kosovo - Former rebel leader Hashim Thaci claimed a third term as prime minister of Kosovo on Sunday after official preliminary results gave him the lead in a snap parliamentary election that also saw minority Serbs casting votes for the 120-seat assembly despite their rejection of Kosovo's claim to statehood.

Official preliminary results gave Thaci's Democratic Party of Kosovo a lead of three percentage points over the opposition Democratic League of Kosovo with over 70 per cent of the ballots counted. The hardline ethnic Albanian Self-determination movement was in third place, it's best showing ever in a general election.

The vote was seen as important for European Union efforts toward stabilizing the Balkan flashpoint 15 years after its independence war from Serbia.

Sunday's election was called after parliament became deadlocked over key issues, including formation of Kosovo's armed forces.

Just over 43 per cent of Kosovo's 1.7 million voters cast ballots, state election authorities said after polls closed.

"Tomorrow morning we continue with our work," Thaci told supporters gathered in the capital Pristina. "Tomorrow we follow the will of the people that was expressed today."

Thaci's strong showing comes despite allegations of government corruption, botched privatization deals and high-profile cases against his top aides suspected by European Union prosecutors in Kosovo of committing war crimes.

Minority Serb participation in the vote was vital for EU-brokered talks to help Kosovo normalize its ties with Serbia.

Hundreds of Serbs cast ballots, but turnout in Serb-held areas was still lower than the overall turnout. No incidents were reported, unlike during the previous two elections.

"I want to believe in what the government of Serbia is doing," 39-year-old Lazar Peric said after casting his ballot in the northern town of Zvecan.

Belgrade has rejected Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence from Serbia, but signed an agreement with Kosovo last year to help advance Serbia's EU membership bid. Kosovo's Serbs have 10 reserved seats in the assembly regardless of participation, but the vote was seen by many as a validation of Kosovo's secession from Serbia.

Among Kosovo's dominant ethnic Albanian population, issues such as the economy topped the agenda.

Lis Balaj, a 23-year-old economy student, said that "whoever comes to power, they should first fight corruption and unemployment."

About 100 prosecutors and judges have been mobilized to impose strict penalties in cases of vote-rigging.

Kosovo's independence war in 1998-99 left some 10,000 people dead. The war ended after NATO forces bombed Serbia to stop the onslaught.

Some 100 countries have recognized Kosovo's independence, including the United States and most EU nations, but not Russia and China.

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Jovana Gec in Belgrade, Serbia, and Zvezdan Djukanovic, in Mitrovica, Kosovo, contributed to this report.

 

Serbia indicts four for Milosevic-era journalist murder (Reuters, 6 June 2014)

BELGRADE - Serbia's top state prosecutor charged four former state security officers on Friday over the 1999 killing of opposition newspaper publisher and journalist Slavko Curuvija during the rule of late strongman president Slobodan Milosevic.

Critics in Serbia have long held Milosevic's dreaded security service and his inner circle responsible for the shooting of Curuvija outside his Belgrade flat. However, no one was charged for the killing until now.

Miljko Radisavljevic, Serbia's chief prosecutor for organized crime, told the official Tanjug news agency that the four men were indicted for "aggravated murder". He was not available for immediate comment.

The four are Radomir Markovic, the former head of Serbia's then-Department of State Security, his aides Ratko Romic and Milan Radonjic, and field operative Miroslav Kurak. They are charged with planning and executing Curuvija's murder, Tanjug quoted Radisavljevic as saying.

Markovic is already serving a 40-year jail term over his role in a 1999 attempt to assassinate opposition leader Vuk Draskovic, in which four other people died.

Romic and Radonjic have been in detention since January while Kurak remains at large.

"The indictment is now being verified (by the court) and provided we pass that ... we will have the date for the trial within 30 days," Radisavljevic said.

Lawyers for Markovic, Romic and Radonjic were not available for comment. The three men have previously denied any wrongdoing.

Curuvija was gunned down on Orthodox Easter 1999, during NATO's air war against Serbia launched over its military crackdown on independence-seeking Albanians in its then-province of Kosovo.

Milosevic was extradited in 2001 to the International war crimes tribunal for former Yugoslavia in The Hague, where he died in 2006 before a trial verdict was reached.

(Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Zoran Radosavljevic and Mark Heinrich)

 

Serbia: the Internet under censorship attack (Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso, by Dragan Janjic, 6 June 2014)

The Serbian government is facing increasingly frequent accusations of web censorship. The interventions by the OSCE and the European Commission, the reactions of prime minister Vucic

The very day that Serbian prime minister Aleksandar Vucic, in a stern press release, accused the OSCE of conducting a "filthy campaign" against him and challenged the organization to "provide evidence" that censorship would be increasing in Serbia, Dunja Mijatovic, OSCE Representative for media freedom, clarified she had discussed the matter with Vucic himself and obtained the promise that the government will take up the cases of certain websites blocked and of comments posted that then disappeared.

The media largely reported both statements, but did not point out the strong discrepancy between them.

Vucic said he did not "want to believe" that Dunja Mijatovic based her claims on information received from one of the websites that "usually leads a dirty campaign against my government", nor on "false information" passed by the representatives of "so-called independent institutions", without even verifying them.

However, these allegations seem to have been played down in the meeting with Dunja Mijatoviæ, therefore it can be concluded that the prime minister has had to change his attitude. The reasons are clear if looking at the position taken by the European Commission (EC) and made public the day after, Tuesday, June 3^rd. The Commission "has in mind" the exchange of messages between the OSCE and the Serbian government on media censorship and said that it will pay "close attention to issues related to media freedom and freedom of expression in the process of negotiations for EU membership".

Peter Stano, spokesperson of European Commissioner Štefan Füle, stated that one of the partners in the accession process will be the OSCE itself, adding that "the European Commission's position is that freedom of expression and the media are very important principles in the process of EU membership" and that the European Commission considers that there is evidence at the base of the claims made by the OSCE on media censorship in Serbia. Vucic, therefore, took a pragmatic attitude after realizing that his allegations against the OSCE and his positions on censorship were in danger of being counterproductive.

Censorship

Protests for Internet censorship peaked earlier this week, after a DdoS digital attack hit the Peščanik website, which often publishes harsh criticisms of the government. The site was attacked after publishing a text, signed by a group of scholars, stating that the Ph.D. thesis of Minister of the Interior Nebojša Stefanovic is partly the result of plagiarism. The episode has actually only contributed to the spread of the piece, since it had already been copied and republished by a large number of other websites and blogs before the hacker attack.

The limitation of freedom of expression on the Internet escalated during the catastrophic floods in Serbia. Last week, three people were even arrested on charges of spreading panic in social networks. At first they had been sentenced to a month of precautionary detention, but they were released on bail after strong reactions by the local public and the OSCE, and will be able to defend themselves at liberty. During the flood, hacker attacks struck several sites that criticized the government's performance in emergency situations.

The Serbian government's stance in the debate on censorship indicates that Serbian institutions believe that the OSCE and the "so-called independent institutions" should present evidence of the complaint for the government's evaluation. In this view, it is not part of the government's tasks to worry about freedom of expression and media and investigate all forms of violation, nor to take into consideration the assessments of various bodies, including the OSCE, and do everything possible to improve the situation.

This attitude may perhaps please the majority of populist-oriented voters, who are inclined to think that problems are caused by "local traitors" and the unfriendly "foreign circles" that pay them. But the OSCE, the associations of journalists and much of the non-governmental sector already understand that the very fact that the government responded to the censorship allegations by asking for evidence is both a threat and an admission of guilt.

Fear

Vucic's direct campaign against social networks has, however, turned out to be counterproductive. The censorship spree and the harsh statements, especially after the floods, have alarmed many. "I'm starting to be afraid" is a phrase which comes up increasingly often within the relatively thin educated layer of society. This feeling of threat will not go away quickly, and it can be said that the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) and the coalition government have favoured the compaction of their political opponents.

From a political perspective, the way the SNS and Vucic responded to floods in Serbia is completely uncalled for. The party has a two-third majority in parliament and there is no reason to embark on a media campaign to solve emergencies or carry out risky censorship actions.

Yet, the SNS does not yet understand the importance of institutions, let alone the media. It has never even tried to reform the former, nor to make the latter more efficient. Instead, Vuèiæ's party persists with the populist rhetoric that won it the election: it relentlessly occupies the media and showers the public with video clips, photographs, and texts on the unceasing activity of the government and party officials. This can be very effective in an election campaign, but during major crises, such as the catastrophic floods that hit the region, this attitude is only likely to show the government's utter inability and failure.

 

Serbia Suspends Works on South Stream Project Over Bulgaria’s Stance (RIA Novosti, by Ramil Sitdikov, 9 June 2014)
BELGRADE - Serbia is putting its participation in the South Stream pipeline project on hold due to Bulgaria’s decision to suspend its involvement, Serbia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction Zorana Mihajloviæ said Monday.
“Bulgaria is the center, therefore, as long as the talks between Bulgaria and Brussels, as well as between European Union and Russia are not accomplished or as long as Russia does not change the route [for the pipeline] , we have to wait,” Mihajloviæ said.
The deputy prime minister added that in both cases construction in Serbia would be frozen.
Earlier on Sunday, Bulgarian media reported the country’s prime minister, Plamen Oresharski, put the South Stream project on hold following a request from the European Commission.
The announcement was made after Oresharski’s meeting with US officials, including Senator John McCain, who visited Bulgaria this weekend as part of a tour of Eastern Europe.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Ministry of Energy said Bulgaria had not officially notified Russia of its decision to suspend the project, adding that the issue would be raised during a meeting with EU Commissioner for Energy Guenther Oettinger on Monday.
Russia started construction on the South Stream pipeline, which bypasses Ukraine instead travelling across the Black Sea for gas deliveries to Southern and Eastern Europe, in 2012.
The European Commission insists Russia’s bilateral talks with transit countries Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovenia violate EU legislation.
Russia in turn initiated legal proceedings in the WTO against the EU’s Third Energy Package, under which owners of pipelines located in the region cannot also be gas producers.

 

Montenegro Poll Re-Runs Leave Djukanovic Win Intact (BIRN, 9 June 2014)

Re-run polls in three Montenegrin municipalities did not change the outcome of May’s local elections which saw Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic's ruling party winning most votes.

Repeat polls were held in Danilovgrad, Kolasin and Bijelo Polje on Sunday due to reports of significant irregularities but the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists, DPS, remained the overall victor.
The DPS took the largest amount of seats in all three municipalities but only won an outright majority in Danilovgrad.
The ruling party said that the results of the vote confirmed its political dominance and the fact it “enjoys the greatest trust of the citizens of Montenegro”.
"As a responsible party, we will continue to create the conditions for dynamic economic and social development of all parts of Montenegro," the DPS said in a statement.
The Election Commission ordered the re-runs after complaints over election violations in the original polls on May 25 from local watchdog MANS and some opposition parties.
The local elections in 12 municipalities were marked by numerous irregularities at polling stations and on electoral rolls, including physical threats and attacks reported by watchdog groups and the opposition.
MANS reported more than 2,500 irregularities at polling stations but the Election Commission acknowledged just a few of them.
Another watchdog, the Centre for Democratic Transition, reported a series of abuses, including a violation of the secrecy of the vote and a violation of postal voting procedures.
After MANS submitted more than 130 criminal complaints, the Montenegrin state prosecutor’s office launched an investigation the allegations last week.

 

Macedonian Prime Minister Reveals New Cabinet (BIRN, by Sinisa Jakov Marusic, 9 June 2014)

Most ministers in the last government look set to remain in their posts as Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski proposed a new cabinet after his party's April election victory.

Gruevski’s most trusted ministers will retain their posts, judging by the list of candidate-ministers that the Macedonian premier officially submitted to parliament on Sunday together with his platform for government.

Gordana Jankuloska remains Police Minister while Zoran Stavreski retains his seat as Vice Prime Minister and Finance Minister. Nikola Poposki remains Foreign Minister; Dime Spasov is again the Minister for Labour and Social Policy, while Nikola Todorov remains Health Minister. Mile Janakieski stays in the post of Transport Minister.

Elizabeta Kanceska-Milevska remains Culture Minister and Ivo Ivanovski remains Minister for Information Society.
The most notable shuffle between Gruevski’s VMRO DPMNE and the junior ruling party, the Democratic Union for Integration, DUI, is the switching of places between the Education Ministry and the Defence Ministry.

The outgoing Environment Minister from the DUI ranks, Abdilaqim Ademi, will now be leading the Education Ministry that was previously run by a VMRO DPMNE politician. In return, the DUI leaves the Defence Ministry to the VMRO DPMNE, which plans to appoint seasoned diplomat Zoran Jolevski to the post.
Jolevski,  who was the Macedonian representative in the long-running UN-sponsored ‘name’ talks with Greece, is the most notable VMRO DPMNE newcomer in the cabinet.
The new Environment Minister is Nurhan Izairi from the DUI. The outgoing Education Minister Spiro Ristovski will remain in the government but this time as Deputy Education Minister.
The three other Vice Prime Ministers also remain the same. Vladimir Pesevski will be in charge of economic affairs; Fatmir Besimi will lead European affairs while Musa Xhaferri will be in charge of the implementation of the Ohrid Framework Accord.
The roster of ministers without a portfolio also remains largely the same. Vele Samak, Bil Pavleski, Nezdet Mustafa and Jerry Naumoff retain their posts, while Visar Fida and Goran Mickovski will be two new ministers without portfolio.
The new Justice Minister is to be Adnan Jashari from the DUI who will replace the outgoing minister, who was also from the DUI ranks, Blerim Bexheti.
The Agriculture Ministry remains in the hands of the small ruling coalition-allied Socialist Party, where Mihail Cvetkov will replace the outgoing Ljupco Dimovski.
A parliamentary session dedicated to confirming the new cabinet has been set for June 19. Gruevski’s party has a firm majority in the legislature.
In his platform for government, the prime minister said that attracting foreign investments and boosting employment were his top priorities for the next four years. The country’s Euro-Atlantic integration is also listed as a priority.
Gruevski’s VMRO DPMNE, which has been in power since 2006, won another four-year term in the April early elections.
However the opposition led by the Social Democrats did not recognize the electoral process, insisting it was fraudulent. It refused to take up its seats in parliament and demand a caretaker government that will set the stage for ‘proper’ elections.
This does not prevent the parliament from functioning because more than two thirds of the 123 MPs have taken their seats.

 

Turkey pledges to help rebuild Bosnia after floods (Today’s Zaman, 7 June 2014)

A relief team from the aid organization Kimse Yok Mu delivered food, cleanup supplies and boats during the first few days of the floods in Bosnia.

Turkey has announced that it will continue to offer assistance to help its longtime Balkan ally Bosnia recover from a disastrous flood, in recognition of the fact that, as Bosnian President Bakir Izetbegovic said when speaking to a CNN reporter in May, “This is the worst thing we've faced since the war.”
Bosnia and Herzegovina recently experienced the worst flooding since record-keeping began over 120 years ago. Three months' worth of rain fell between May 14 and May 17, leaving a quarter of the nation's population, primarily in northeastern and central Bosnia, affected by the inundation and accompanying landslides. Cities such as Maglaj, Doboj and Bijeljina, among others, were all but submerged under water, often leaving people stranded and waiting for help on their rooftops.
“At the moment, everyone is helping each other. … We are not thinking about the things that divide us,” Izetbegovic said. Some 20 years ago, Bosnia was engulfed in a war following the breakup of Yugoslavia that ended with strained political and ethnic relations and left millions homeless and impoverished. The country is still struggling to recover.
Foreign Policy magazine reported that at a news conference in May, Bosnian Foreign Minister Zlatko Lagumadzija said: “During the war, many people lost everything. Today, again they have nothing.”
Melissa Rustemov, a 21-year-old Bosnian woman from central Bosnia, gets off the phone with her grandmother who lives in Matuzici, a small town outside of the city of Doboj; devastated, she says, “The water has covered both of our houses; one all the way to the roof and the other up to the second floor. Everything is ruined.”
With ties that date back to Ottoman times, Turkey has always been willing to help Bosnia, and contemporary regional trilateral mechanisms, such as the agreement between Bosnia, Turkey and Serbia, have further strengthened the longstanding relationship Turkey has with Bosnia.
According to Turkey's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turkey is one of Bosnia and Herzegovina's largest foreign direct investors. Turkey has invested some $81 million in Bosnia in various infrastructure and housing projects as well as manufacturing and hydroelectric power plants.
Turkey's commitment to Bosnia made it natural for Turkey to help the people of Bosnia during this natural disaster. Many Turkish government and private organizations are taking part in ongoing efforts to aid the flood victims. Izetbegovic told CNN, “Everyone is doing their best...Turks are doing their best.” Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmet Davutoğlu tweeted on May 18, “Our related institutions at home and peacekeeping troops stationed in the region are ready to offer every kind of help.” According to Turkish media reports, Turkish Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina Ahmet Yıldız said that aid is being transported to Bosnia by Turkish troop vehicles from the European Union Force (EUFOR), including 125,000 sandbags, generators, drainage pumps, blankets, cleaning materials and relief teams,.   Organizations such as the Turkish Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA) have sent humanitarian aid to flood victims all over Bosnia and Herzegovina, including two convoys that delivered emergency supply kits, blankets, and fuel, Turkish news sources say, and TİKA has said it will send more as necessary. Turkish media reports also indicate that the Prime Ministry's Disaster and Emergency Management Directorate (AFAD) participated in aid coordination with other humanitarian relief organizations throughout Turkey in order to help those affected by the floods.
Among the local charitable organizations that have responded, Beşir Derneği (Beşir Association), a local Turkish humanitarian aid association, provided immediate relief for the flood victims. They tweeted pictures of small groups of their volunteers who were able to cover a lot of ground in Bosnia during the first few days of the flooding, hastening the rescue process. A member of the organization Genç Boşnaklar Derneği İstanbul (Bosnian Youth Association of Istanbul) spoke to Sunday's Zaman and said, “In seven days, TL 11,500 was collected,” and the Ankara organization Udruzenje Studenata Turska (Students' Association of Turkey) also collected more than TL 8,000, which they brought to Bosnia to help flood victims.
The Turkish relief organization Kimse Yok Mu (Is Anyone There) has also provided assistance. Yusuf Yıldırım, manager of their international aid department, said they are working closely with municipalities in Bosnia and their partner association in Bosnia, Izvor Nade (Spring of Hope), to ensure the aid is distributed directly to the people in need. Yıldırım reported to Sunday's Zaman that Kimse Yok Mu's involvement is “[dependent upon] the budget that [we] have and depending on donations they receive.” Ertuğrul Yorguner works for ASYA, the Kimse Yok Mu search and rescue team, and is responsible for the relief team organized in Bosnia during the first few days of the floods. His team of three Turkish volunteers met with 12 Bosnian volunteers to prepare packages with food, supplies to help with cleanup and boats. They distributed over 1,500 emergency packages in the cities of Zenica and Doboj in central Bosnia, as well as Maglaj, Orašje, and Bijeljina in the northeast. The most urgent need for help was in Bijeljina and Orašje, where the floodwaters had still not yet receded. In Maglaj and Doboj they cleaned out homes destroyed by the flooding and provided beds, blankets, food and cleaning supplies. According to Yorguner, Kimse Yok Mu allocated $110,000 for Bosnia in monetary aid as well as supplies.
“They [Bosnian people] were very grateful. … They feel as though they are not alone,” Yıldırım said. Bosnia is still ill equipped to deal with the aftermath of the flood; its economy has not fully recovered from the war and the unemployment rate is at around 44 percent. Izetbegovic publicly admitted that Bosnia would probably “need a few hundred million [euros]” to make it through this summer.
In a press release on May 18, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that they plan to continue to provide assistance based on requests from the region.
Bosnia continues to face shortages of food, clean water, shelter and electricity.
The relief that Turkey has provided to the flood victims has tremendously helped Bosnia move toward recovery. This assistance shows that close relations can be both necessary and beneficial in times of need.

 

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Media summaries are produced for the internal use of the United Nations Office in Belgrade, UNMIK and UNHQ. The contents do not represent anything other than a selection of articles likely to be of interest to a United Nations readership.