Croatia says it will continue building the Pelješac Bridge regardless of Bosnia and Herzegovina's opposition

Ahead of yesterday's session of the Croatian Government, journalists asked the Minister of Transport, Oleg Butković, for a comment on Bosnia and Herzegovina's opposition to the construction of the Pelješac Bridge.

"The construction of the Pelješac Bridge is starting. Bids will be accepted on Friday. The Pelješac Bridge is being built on Croatian territory. There is no obstacle to this bridge being built," said Butković.

The Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina previously adopted a Declaration demanding that Croatia and the EU halt all procedures regarding the construction of the Pelješac Bridge until an agreement is reached with the BiH side on this issue. However, representatives from Croatia, as well as HDZ BiH, state that they will not respect the Declaration of the BiH Parliament, even though it was adopted by a majority vote.
Representatives from Brussels also previously stated that they expected Croatia to reach a consensus with Bosnia and Herzegovina regarding the construction of the Pelješac Bridge.

It is indicative that Croatia sent a document to Brussels confirming that the BiH side allegedly does not oppose the construction of the bridge, but it was later determined that Bosnia and Herzegovina never gave such consent to Croatia!

If Croatia builds the bridge in the Bay of Mali Ston, at least before Bosnia and Herzegovina obtains a free corridor to the open sea, Bosnia and Herzegovina's access to international waters will be blocked, thereby violating the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, writes NAP.