English
A high level meeting between Macedonia, Greece, Serbia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Bosnia an Croatia will take place on Thursday in Solun (Thessaloniki). European Union Commissioner for Transportation Apostolos Tzitzikostas will host the event that will reiterate the importance of investing in the north-south Corridor 10, announced Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Nikoloski.
The better the infrastructure connections in the Balkans are, the better it will be for all of us. It is natural that the capitals of Greece and Bulgaria want to be connected, but if we look from the perspective of economic feasibility, the route through Macedonia is far shorter. That is why since the election of our Government we had to work very seriously for Macedonia to maintain its geostrategic position. We are at the intersection of Corridor 10 and Corridor and also the shortest route along Corridor 10. Otherwise Macedonia would be left as a dead end. Given that we will begin concrete activities in Autumn, while the announced Athens to Sofia train would be implemented at the earliest in 2029, I think we have significant advantage, said Nikoloski.
The Deputy Prime Minister added that there was a 23 percent increase in cargo transit and 18 percent in the revenue in the first three months of the year. A cargo link between Dracevo and Miladinovci, near Skopje, will be operational later this month, meaning that freight trains will no longer have to enter Skopje. At the same time, with the support of EBRD, Macedonia is purchasing three new freight engines, added Nikoloski.
Nikoloski said that an effect of the business forum in Istanbul is that Macedonia will add a direct flight to Ankara, while a hundred businessman from each side met to look for joint business opportunities. “The fact that Prime Minister Mickoski was welcomed with highest state honors by President Erdogan shows the level of relations we have with Türkiye, Erdogan’s personal respect toward Mickoski but also the quality of our bilateral ties. I think that the visit was exceptionally successful and we will see its results in the coming period”, added Nikoloski.