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RF, Serbia to extend deal on RF sappers work for 5 years – Shoigu

The Russian government provided 16 million U.S. dollars for this purpose

NIS, Serbia, October 17 (Itar-Tass) — Russia and Serbia will extend an agreement on the work of Russian sappers in the republic for another five years, Russian Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Monday.

“The Russian government provided 16 million U.S. dollars for this purpose. We are planning to extend the agreement. It will expire in 2012,” Shoigu told journalists.

“We’d like to end the mine sweeping operation in Serbia within this period,” the Russian minister said.

Russian Emergencies Minister Sergei Shoigu and Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dacic signed a package of documents on Monday to deploy a regional emergency response centre in the Balkan region.

According to Dacic, the centre will begin operating within several months. “Today we’ve signed documents, which are the next step towards this way. It will begin operating within several months after necessary formalities are ended,” the Serbian minister told journalists.

“In the past 15 years we provided assistance to Europe to cope with the consequences of disasters. We hope that the centre will be more effective in this aspect. We’ve always said such centre are indispensable in Europe because major accidents need joint response,” Shoigu stressed.

“In the present-day world it is practically impossible to alone respond to emergency situations,” the Russian minister noted.

The creation of the regional centre is a Russian-Serbian initiative, which was put forth several years ago. The city of Nis was chosen to create a centre due to its convenient geographical location.

The key task of the centre will be to respond to emergency situations, which can occur in the region. This territory is affected by exposure to emergency risks – floods, landslides, wildfires, experts say.