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In Zagreb, Kantor Signs Billion Dollar Deal By Davor Huic
"Over the last 72 hours, we turned promise into performance and hope into reality," Kantor said, summing up his Bosnia and Croatia tour, which included visits to Dubrovnik, Sarajevo, Kantor's trade mission continued the work begun by his late predecessor, Ron Brown, in April, when a U.S. air force plane carrying a large business delegation crashed into a mountain near Dubrovnik during a storm, killing all 35 people aboard.
"What we literally are doing is building a structure for permanent peace, built on economic development and jobs and growing standard of living," he told reporters after meeting President Franjo Tudjman. U.S. efforts to build a stable peace in the area torn by the 3½-year war, are directed primarily at strenghtening the alliance and economic ties between Croatia and Bosnia.
To promote the cooperation, the three sides met in the walled Adriatic city of Dubrovnik on Thursday where they reached an agreement on major investment in infrastructure. They agreed on building a highway from Zagreb to Dubrovnik, which would partly go through western Bosnia, and to reopen an existing route which cuts through central Bosnia from the river Sava in the north to the Adriatic port of Ploce. Those roads would help link different parts of Croatia, and connect Bosnia with central European markets.
The U.S. Trade Development Agency said it would commit $500 million to help prepare the project. "(These agreements) are a major step forward not only in our relations but in building a permanent peace in the region," Kantor said.
A U.S. official, who asked not to be named, said two energy deals signed by Croatian electricity board and ENRON Corp and ENSERCH Corp are just starting points for serious negotiations. The source said the two plants, whose precise locations were still to be determined, were supposed to be built, owned and operated by the U.S. companies, and the electricity sold to Croatia. No time frame was set for either project.
In Sarajevo on Friday, Kantor announced the signing of a bilateral agreement between Bosnia and the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC). He said the agreement would open the way for project finance
and political risk insurance for U.S. companies seeking to do business in Bosnia. Talking to the Croatian chamber of commerce he said the Croatian economy was impressive for its stable currency, balanced budget, low inflation --under four percent -- and six percent growth.
"All this suggests that Croatia is an excellent place for the U.S. investment," he was quoted as saying by the Hina news agency. The delegation, made up of representatives of 18 U.S. companies who together boast $65 billion in annual revenue -- almost four times more than the Croatian economy -- was due to leave Zagreb for the United States later in the day. |
ZAGREB, July 13 (Reuters) - U.S. Commerce Secretary Mickey Kantor and a delegation of top U.S. executives visited the Croatian capital on Saturday, the final day of their three-day mission to boost trade and investment in the Balkans. The two sides signed a bilateral investment treaty and two memoranda of understanding on building two thermo-electric plants in Croatia, together worth around $1 billion.
Berserkistan, July 12 · Kantor Wraps Whirlwind Bosnia Trade Mission
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