Bukvic: Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Balkan region are a platform for strategic alliance of Turkey and the EU

IEDC  BLED School of Management organized a conference entitled „The EU and Turkey, Business and Political Leadership for a Common Future“. The conference was officially opened by prof. Danica Purg, the President of the IEDC BLED School of Management, and H.E. Derya Kanday, the Ambassador of Republic Turkey in Slovenia.

The CEO of BBI and a member of the International Advisory Board of the BLED School of Management, Mr. Amer Bukvic, said that Slovenia may play a significant role in joint projects with Turkey in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"There is an opportunity to do so through higher education, but also by positioning Sarajevo as a regional media center. There are already successful examples; agency Anadolu and Al Jazeera TV, which opened regional offices for the Balkans in Sarajevo, "said Bukvic.

The CEO of BBI pointed out the possibility of cooperation through sport, talked about making joint private hospitals and thermal water treatment centers for the Arabian and Turkish tourists, and the realization of cooperation in agricultural projects, such as Halal Park, the organic production and platform for food safety technology in the project of the rich Gulf countries.

"The alliance can also be achieved through co-production of Turkey, Slovenia and other countries in the region in making films, which would make closer the culture of Europe and the East. Regions of Balkan and Bosnia are a trial platform through which the EU and Turkey may achieve strategic alliance "concluded Bukvic. Murat Yulek, Dean of the Faculty of Business Administration and Vice Rector of THC University said: “EU leadership challenges are political and economic; however, our business relationship is closer and better than the political one. There is a lot of historical prejudice, rooting in 16th Century that we have to leave behind, because we simply can’t remake the history. But what we must do is: reorient our minds towards common future and respect each other deeply.”

Gokhan Kamil Bozkurt, the CEO of Turk Telekom, said that by buying the “fiber net” Turkey became a link for Europe in the world of telecommunications, especially towards The Middle East and Asia.

Dr. Joshua Walker, an American professor, stressed that EU has two options: either to bring Turkey into the EU or that its economy continues to decline.  The president of the Chamber of Commerce of Slovenia and Mr. Dragan Đurčin, the president of Deloitta Serbia, also delivered speeches on the conference.