Minister Jusko clear in his positions: The final word in the 'Pelješac Bridge' case will be given by the BiH Parliament!

There is not a single minister of communications and transport who has the exclusive right to sign matters such as the 'Pelješki most' case and similar issues. This requires the consent of the Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina, stated tonight on the TV1 news program the BiH Minister of Transport and Communications Ismir Jusko, following frequent messages from Croatia, as well as some political parties from BiH, that Bosnia and Herzegovina reached a compromise on the construction of the Pelješac Bridge with Croatia as early as 11 years ago.

Although such messages also came from some people within the SBB, of which Minister Jusko is also a member, he clearly stated tonight that the final word in the Pelješac Bridge case is given by the BiH Parliament and the Presidency, and not any ministry or even less an expert group. 

„The Pelješac Bridge has been relevant since 2005. In 2006, an expert group was delegated from the BiH side, which, together with the Croatian side, worked on harmonizing the dimensions of the bridge. The Croatian side requested 35 meters, then later 45 meters for the bridge height... BiH proposed a height of 55 meters, and that was ultimately adopted. Initially, it was proposed that the navigable passage be 150 meters. BiH requested that it be 200 meters, and that was also accepted. However, from 2007 until now, there have been no further meetings regarding the Pelješac Bridge“, said Jusko, after which he asked: „Why was it waited from 2007, why were activities not continued?“ 

An important piece of information, Jusko said, is that during that waiting period, four convocations of the BiH Parliament changed, and five ministers sat at the head of the Ministry of Communications and Transport.

„I intend to elaborate on all the activities that have taken place in the meantime regarding the Pelješac Bridge case at the Parliament session on September 6. What I can be sure of and what I can say is that absolutely nothing has been signed by this ministry. There is not a single minister of communications and transport who has the exclusive right to sign such and similar matters. It is up to the Parliament to make that decision. The Council of Ministers and the ministry will follow the instructions from the Parliament“, concluded Jusko.

Expert groups as well as pro-Bosnian parties have warned in recent days that the construction of the Pelješac Bridge would close Bosnia and Herzegovina's access to the open sea, which would be the first case of its kind in the world, and Croatia would most brutally violate the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, reports the Patria agency.