Minister Šarović at Conference “BiH and the Russian Federation – possibilities of improving economic cooperation”

Sarajevo, April 25, 2013 - Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of BiH Mirko Šarović took an active role today at the Conference “BiH and the Russian Federation-Possibilities of Improving Economic Cooperation”, organized by the BiH Foreign Trade Chamber in cooperation with the Embassy of Russia to BiH.

The conference represents the first step in planned activities for better understanding of BiH companies of the Russian market and the possibilities of establishing better business cooperation.

Minister Šarović said that authorities in BiH must create conditions and remove barriers in order for trade with Russia to improve.

“Russia is among five most important partners of our country when it comes to foreign trade, next to Serbia, Germany and Italy. It is clear that energy – oil and gas are the key resources that BiH imports. And when it comes to export to Russia, pharmaceutical products deserve attention. Annual exports from BiH to Russia amount to nearly EUR 30 million,” Minister Šarović noted.

Minister also emphasized that BiH needs to recognize sectors in which export may increase, such as, first of all the sectors of civil engineering, tourism and regional cooperation. He said that CEFTA countries, where BiH is an important factor, could perform together when it comes to the Russian market.

The Russian Ambassador to BiH, H. E. Mr. Alexander BOTSAN-KHARCHENKO said that Russia has reasons to be pleased, considering that Russian companies have come to BiH and that they are successful.

"Russian companies, especially in the energy sector, are very present in BiH. However, there is still space to reach a balance in terms of the presence of Russian companies across BiH, because Russian companies are mostly present in Republika Srpska. Both countries have a lot of work to do in the legal field, in resolving debts and renewing contracts, "said Kharchenko.

The Vice-President of the BiH Foreign Trade Chamber, Mr Nemanja Vasić said that the current foreign trade exchange between BiH and Russia is small compared to the possibilities.

"I hope that today's meeting represents a new beginning which will include major institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Russia in order to raise the cooperation to a higher level. In 2012, BiH exports to Russia amounted to 28,6 million euros, and imports to Russia were 128,2 million euros, which is a clear enough sign of how small the trade cooperation is. We have noticed in our analyses that Turkish and Russian markets are perhaps the most significant to BiH, because there is a lot of space to do something concrete there," noted Mr. Vasić.

"Our goals will also be reducing administrative barriers when it comes to foreign trade. Another goal is to get a certain quota for duty-free export of certain products," said Mr. Vasić.