Mesic, who arrived in Gradacac from Brcko District as part of his one-day visit to Bosnia, together with the head of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency Sulejman Tihic, addressed entrepreneurs who gathered at an international fair of agriculture and food-processing industry.
"It is not true that had Croatia given up on Bosnia-Herzegovina, as many like to interpret. Croatia is searching for a partner in Bosnia, but a partner in an integral and united state," Mesic said.
"Croatia today needs Bosnia, but Bosnia also needs Croatia, not only because of the history but also because of a joint future," Mesic said at a panel discussion "Bosnia and Croatia on a Path Towards the EU" in which he took part together with Tihic.
European integration processes will not be completed until all Southeast European countries are in one part of that process and we can not find such a future in changing borders, but in cross border cooperation, Mesic said.
He advocated the abandonment of collective accusations for war crimes and stressed that the only right thing was the individual processing of war crimes.
A country cannot enter the European Union with war criminals and by covering up war crimes, Tihic said.
"Meeting European standards is primarily in the interest of citizens and only then a condition for membership of NATO and the EU," Tihic said.
Speaking about the two countries' economic cooperation, Mesic said that all trade of western and eastern Europe was going through Croatia and added that the fastest way of connecting Croatia's north and south was through Bosnia. The Croatian President also stressed the importance of the southern Croatian port of Ploce and said it could become a port for the supply of the entire region.
The Chairman of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency expressed hope that the issue of agriculture would be raised to the state level because in his opinion this would be one of the EU conditions.
"When it comes to Croatia, we have solved the most important issues," Tihic said
Mesic called for the strengthening of economic cooperation. He also advocated the two countries' joint presentations at third markets such as Pakistan.