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Southeast European States Agree to Develop Regional Transport Network

Posted on: Friday, 11 November 2005, 09:00 CST

Southeast European states agree to develop regional transport network

TIRANA, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Transport ministers of Southeast European countries agreed Thursday to make joint efforts to vigorously develop a united regional transport network and to set up a secretariat to supervise the work, said reports from the Macedonian capital Skopje.

The secretariat will be designated to work out a five-year plan on developing a major transport network in the region and to fix the priorities of infrastructure construction, according to the MPRESS news agency, quoting a pact signed by the ministers in Skopje on Thursday following their meeting on the regional transport development.

The ministers agreed to make a common appeal for the European Union (EU) investment in the transport field in the west Balkans in order to fund 145 projects worth 8 billion euros (about 9.36 billion US dollars) in the coming years. These projects, including construction of highways, railways, airports and sea ports in accordance with international standards, will help facilitate the Southeast European nations' approach to the EU bloc.

EU officials who attended the meeting said the bloc will offer aid for the transport construction in Southeast Europe, and urged the states in the region to strengthen cooperation.

Transport ministers from Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, and EU representatives participated in the one-day meeting in Skopje.

Source: Xinhua News Agency - CEIS

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