In 2005, Croatia's Prime Minister Ivo Sanader formally opened construction works on what is to be the longest bridge in Croatia, one that will connect the southern Peljesac peninsula to the mainland. The purpose of the bridge is to connect the southernmost part of Croatia, cut off from the rest of the country at Neum, where neighbouring Bosnia-Herzegovina has a narrow outlet to the Adriatic Sea.
According to the existing project, the Peljesac bridge, which is to be built off Bosnia's Neum, will be 2,300 metres long, 150 metres wide and 30 metres high, and the cost of construction is estimated at 250-300 million euros along with access roads. Since then, the Bosnian authorities have opposed this project, criticising its height, which they say would impede Bosnia's access to the high seas.
"The current project does not guarantee that Bosnia will have unimpeded access to its territorial waters," Bosnian Transport and Communications Minister Branko Dokic told reporters in Sarajevo on Monday after the ministerial council discussed the issue and accepted a relevant report by an expert team in charge of analysing the Peljesac bridge project.
Neither the ministerial council nor the expert team proposed any solution to Croatia, but Minister Dokic said that Bosnia was willing to continue the talks so as to find a solution acceptable to both countries.
"It is unquestionable that Croatia has the right to build a bridge on its territory, but it is also unquestionable that Bosnia can insist on free access to its territorial waters," Dokic said.
Asked by reporters, the Bosnian minister welcomed a recent proposal about building a bascule bridge as one of the alternatives to the existing project.
"If Croatia is in favour (of the bascule bridge), then it is a great step forward, and this will facilitate our efforts in Bosnia to reach a final agreement," Dokic said.
He added that both governments believed that the Peljesac bridge should not be treated as a political problem but as an issue to be addressed by experts.