KOŠARAC: IS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SABOTAGING PARTICIPATION IN EXPO 2027?

SARAJEVO, December 24 /SRNA/ - Deputy Chair of the Council of Ministers Staša Košarac said that the institutions of Republika Srpska have approached preparations for participation in the prestigious world exhibition Expo 2027 in Belgrade in a responsible and serious manner, but that, unfortunately, there is an impression that the Federation of BiH /FBiH/ is slowing down and complicating this process.

"Specifically, we have been waiting for more than two months for the FBiH Government to submit additional proposals of members to be appointed to the Organising Committee for BiH's participation in the specialized exhibition Expo 2027," Košarac told SRNA. He said that the FBiH Government initially submitted the name of only one member, after which, at a session of the Council of Ministers, at the request of Bosniak ministers, it was asked to supplement that decision with additional members, given the multidisciplinary and intersectoral approach to participation in Expo 2027. "Unlike FBiH," he added, "Republika Srpska completed its part of the job in a timely manner and submitted proposals for members of the Organizing Committee. Despite our insistence and repeated reminders, we have received no response from the federal Government to this day," Košarac said. He explained that the decision on appointing the Organising Committee is stalled in the Council of Ministers because Bosniak ministers do not want to take a position until the FBiH Government submits a decision on appointing additional members. "It is incomprehensible that for more than two months the FBiH Government has been delaying the submission of its proposals, preventing us from completing a task of a purely technical nature. We are going in circles, while time is passing," Košarac stressed. He said it is justified to ask whether the FBiH Government is consciously and deliberately sabotaging this process by slowing down BiH's preparations for participation in Expo 2027. "The indifferent attitude of the authorities in FBiH threatens to jeopardise the opportunity for businesses from both FBiH and Republika Srpska to present their capacities at the most prestigious regional event in Belgrade in 2027," Košarac concluded. He pointed out that hosting Expo 2027 in Belgrade represents a major opportunity to promote and affirm the economic capacities of Republika Srpska and FBiH, noting that Serbia is intensively working on the construction of facilities and infrastructure for this specialized exhibition. Expo 2027 is expected to host more than 120 countries and attract over four million visitors.