IMPORTANT COOPERATION WITH ONCOLOGY CENTRE IN SAINT PETERSBURG

SAINT PETERSBURG, JUNE 19 /SRNA/ - Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik states that it is important for Srpska to have a partner in the Napalkov Oncology Centre in Saint Petersburg, where patients from Republika Srpska, especially children from areas bombed with depleted uranium by NATO, can receive the highest quality treatment.

"When NATO bombed our territory with depleted uranium, it caused many /malignant/ diseases, from newborns to adults, and the number of patients increased eightfold compared to before," Dodik told the press after visiting the Centre. He emphasized that it is therefore important for Srpska to have partners in this institution for quick interventions so that children can begin treatment swiftly. The president of Srpska points out that Serbia and its institutions also cooperate with the Napalkov Oncology Centre. Dodik recalled that all members of an Italian unit within international forces, who were not informed about the areas where NATO dropped depleted uranium bombs, developed illnesses after five years and died from malignant diseases nine years later. He stated that the families of those soldiers sued NATO but achieved nothing in court, and later sued the Italian government, which, by court ruling, was ordered to pay them over EUR 300 million in total compensation. "This doesn't apply to us. We cannot sue anyone because NATO, as a criminal organisation, has protected itself in the international arena from any prosecution," Dodik said. He also reminded that NATO bombed Serbia in 1999, also using depleted uranium, and that Serbia recorded an increased number of cancer patients, RTRS reports. The Napalkov Oncology Centre is a leading medical institution for specialized oncology care in Saint Petersburg and serves as a scientific and educational partner of Republika Srpska.