Serbia expects to become co-owner of Port of Bar

The Minister of Capital Investments of Republic of Serbia, Velimir Ilić, announced negotiations at the highest government level about the sale of part of Montenegrin Port of Bar to Serbia. He estimated that there was the base for negotiations about allotment of part of the Bar Port to Serbia.

"If we do not reach agreement, Serbia is willing to buy part of the port of Bar, because our whole strategy depends on it", said Ilić. According to Ilić, it is very important for Serbia to be connected with the maritime waterways and he stated that it would turn to Salonika and Corridor 10 in case negotiations with Montenegro failed. Ilić reminded that Serbia had been investing in that port and Belgrade-Bar road for decades and that it was willing to invest into the future highway towards south Adriatic.

The Assistant of the Montenegrin Minister of Transportation, Radoš Šućur, said that Serbia had not asked for the part of ownership in the port of Bar, but that it had showed interest in the participation in privatization, because, in that way, Belgrade- Bar railway would get full importance. "Neither Ilić, nor any other official asked in the talks with the representatives of Montenegrin Government that Serbia obtains part of the port of Bar", said Šućur. The Government of Montenegro is preparing strategy for privatization of Port of Bar, Montenegrin Railways and airport, for which international tender should be announced in 2007.