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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

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Dacic, Konuzin visit Russian State Agency EMERCOM personnel in Nis

Nis, 15 September 2008

First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Ivica Dacic and Russian Ambassador in Serbia Alexander V. Konuzin visited today members of the Russian State Agency EMERCOM in Nis, who are currently working on demining the Konstantin Veliki Airport.

Ivica Dacic, left, and Alexander V. Konuzin

Dacic stressed that Serbian people appreciate the assistance from the Russian Federation, not only considering demining but the principled position of Russia on the Kosovo issue and the position of Serbia in international relations.

Minister said that there are many bombs in Nis, left over from the bombing in 1999, many of which are cluster bombs, banned for use.

He reminded that Russian special troops, members of the Russian State Agency EMERCOM are working in Nis gratis, and he added that this gesture is a way to diminish consequences of 1999 bombing.

He also said that he expects that after the ratification of the gas agreement with Russia, all other acts related to that arrangement will be signed in the Serbian Parliament, leading to the speedier construction of gas pipeline and other investments following on from it.

Ambassador Konuzin and Chief of Serbia’s Demining Agency Petar Mihajlovic confirmed that negotiations on the continuation of cooperation to demine parts of Serbia’s territory still containing cluster bombs will be resumed.

Konuzin said that Russian deminers will work on the preparation of the gas pipeline route through Serbia, and pointed to the major importance of ratifying the gas agreement in the Serbian Parliament.

He expressed hopes that the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations will successfully cooperate with a similar service for emergency situations which is to be formed in Serbia.

Russian special troops have been at the airport in Nis since July 31, when they started the process of demining, and up to date they have found 13 cluster bombs, 5 aerial bombs and 3 mortars, 20 shells for anti- aircraft guns and 1 detonator, while some mines are remnants from World War Two.

Chief of the Russian team Andrei Vinohodov specified that Russian special troops were searching a 123 000 square metre area by hand, while an automated machine checked 263 000 square metres of the civilian part of the airport in Nis.

Early in July, the Russian Federation provided $6 million for clearing cluster bombs from the civilian part of the airport in Nis, the use of which is forbidden by international conventions.