Sarajevo, June 9 (Hina) - If the Croatian parliament fails to ratify a bilateral agreement with Bosnia-Herzegovina on the use of the port of Ploce, Bosnia's parliament should then annul the ratification of that deal as well as of an
agreement on the free passage through Neum, said Kasim Trnka, an advisor in the Bosnian collective presidency.
Sarajevo, June 9 (Hina) - If the Croatian parliament fails to ratify
a bilateral agreement with Bosnia-Herzegovina on the use of the
port of Ploce, Bosnia's parliament should then annul the
ratification of that deal as well as of an agreement on the free
passage through Neum, said Kasim Trnka, an advisor in the Bosnian
collective presidency. #L#
Trnka, a former Bosnian ambassador to Zagreb, on Sunday was quoted
by the Sarajevo-based "Dnevni Avaz" daily as saying that one should
keep in mind that the agreements on Ploce and the passage through
Neum are interrelated in line with the 1994 Washington Agreement.
The southern Croatian seaport of Ploce, linked with Bosnian cities
of Mostar and Sarajevo by railway, is used by Bosnian companies for
shipping their exported and imported products. The area of Neum is a
coastal stretch of Bosnian territory cutting the Dubrovnik area
from the rest of Croatia.
Trnka's statement was response to conclusions of a round table held
in Ploce on 7 June when participants in that event suggested that
the Croatian Sabor should turn down the agreement on the port of
Ploce and refuse to ratify it.
Commenting on the Ploce round table, Bosnia's Foreign Trade
Minister, Azra Hadziahmetovic has said that those who propose such
solutions should know that international law has precedence over
domestic legislation of the two countries.
Hadziahmetovic reiterated the view of her government: Croatia must
ratify the agreement on the use of Ploce before the two countries'
expert commissions agree on amendments on which Zagreb insists.
(hina) ms