KOŠARAC MEETS WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF INTERNATIONAL LAW FIRM ON TRGOVSKA GORA

SARAJEVO, JANUARY 19 /SRNA/ –Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations in the Council of Ministers Staša Košarac met with representatives of an expert team and the international legal consultancy firm “Labor Law” from France to discuss the construction of a radioactive waste disposal facility at Trgovska Gora. It was concluded that a request should be made for this issue to be resolved by international courts.

It was requested that the European Commission urgently and actively engage in addressing this issue, including initiating proceedings to determine violations of EU law, with the possibility of launching legal action against Croatia before the Court of Justice of the European Union. The joint conclusion was that a formal request be submitted to Croatia for the matter to be resolved before the International Court of Justice or an international arbitration tribunal. It was emphasized that other credible models of action would also be considered, aimed at protecting the rights and health of citizens, as well as the environment in this area. The meeting also concluded that it is necessary to open communication with Serbia as a potentially interested party. The participants noted that activities undertaken so far to address this issue have been agile, credible and timely, expressing full readiness and commitment to continue implementing efficient and responsible measures to prevent Croatia’s intention to locate the disputed waste facility in close proximity to the border with BiH. It was emphasized that BiH’s capacities are fully mobilized and that the country will respond in a credible manner to the Environmental Impact Assessment once it is published by Croatia, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations in the Council of Ministers announced. The meeting noted that, on behalf of BiH, two rounds of submissions with dozens of annexes have been filed with the competent bodies of the Espoo Convention, highlighting multiple violations of the Espoo Convention by Croatia. An oral hearing before the Espoo Committee is expected to be held in Geneva in May this year. Petitions have also been submitted to the competent institutions regarding the Sava and Danube conventions, stressing that construction of the disputed facility at Trgovska Gora represents a serious risk to international waterways, including the Sava and Danube rivers, and that Croatia has neither conducted a transboundary impact assessment nor accepted BiH’s proposal to carry out joint investigations. It was particularly emphasized that a comprehensive submission has been filed with the European Commission, pointing to numerous violations of EU law by Croatia in relation to the Trgovska Gora issue. The interlocutors recalled that multiple protest notes have been sent to the competent institutions in Croatia, and that preparations are under way for additional proceedings related to violations of the Aarhus and Bern Conventions. It was noted that, in the coming period, the application of so-called soft and hard legal protection mechanisms and legal actions on behalf of BiH will be analyzed, which includes, among other measures, initiating administrative disputes in Croatia and filing constitutional complaints in that country, as fundamental human rights and the right to a healthy environment are at risk. It was emphasized that the international legal consultancy firm will continue implementing the further action plan in cooperation with the competent institutions and the Expert Team, taking into account all applicable conventions related to Croatia’s unacceptable conduct regarding the construction of the disputed disposal facility at Trgovska Gora. The statement added that Croatia’s competent institutions will once again be requested to provide BiH with timely, necessary and comprehensive information regarding this issue.