Mr. Chairman,
Mr. Director General,
Your Excellencies, 
Ladies and Gentlemen, 

I would like to begin my speech by expressing deep gratitude to Mr. Boris Trajkovski for his having kindly invited me to take part in the work of this significant gathering, which is taking place in the beautiful town of Ohrid, a genuine cultural monument and the friendly country of Macedonia, which has always maintained good relations and outstanding co-operation with 
BiH.

I would also like to say how happy I am to have the UNESCO Director General, H. E. Mr. Koïchiro Matsuura with us today, who has from the very beginning of his work been putting enormous efforts into making UNESCO always more present in the region of South-Eastern Europe. 

Mr. Chairman,

Dialogue is a key-element for improving relations and co-operation between nations and states. An honest and open dialogue is a basic pre-condition for successful termination of negotiations, for bringing different views closer and reaching acceptable solutions. It is only through a dialogue that it is possible to overcome differences and disagreements) to reduce the level of dispute and resolve conflicts.

History teaches us that it is sometimes very difficult to establish a dialogue due to the heritage of wars, conflicts, violence and hatred, deeply marked into the memory. In order to overcome consequences and recurrences of that heritage, we need to take the path of peace, forgiving and tolerance.

Conflicts and hostility build up walls and distrust between people and aggravate dialogue between confronted parties, so that many dialogue attempts in those cases very often resemble a Sisyphean task.

As there is no alternative to dialogue and negotiations, which represent the only hope In conflict termination and peace establishment and as not even a simple, everyday dialogue can be generated by itself, it is necessary to include all available resources and energy in strengthening dialogue and negotiation process.

It belongs to our common task to build up a new world, capable of viewing its own future with brightness and to create pre-conditions for overcoming a hundreds-year long conflict with the goal of opening up a path to honest and successful dialogue, which Will through respect of cultural, religious and other differences, bring us to the civilization of peace and love.

Just like the Holy Father Joan Paul II pointed out in one of his messages of peace: “...dialogue brings to the recognition of the richness of differences and opening of spirit towards mutual acceptance, with the aim of genuine co-operation, which is answering the original appeal to the unity of overall human species…”

However, nowadays at the height of globalisation, human beings as individuals and human species in general seem to be tom between different cultures, religions and civilisations, as well as unwilling to face in the right manner challenges of strong technological development. A certain spiritual emptiness is to be noticed too, which results from moral and philosophic desolation of our time.

Full awareness of and better acquaintance with values of one's own and someone else's cultures will certainly help adequate facing this and other challenges brought by encounter of civilizations.

Nowadays two opposed trends have significant influence on successfulness of dialogue between civilizations -globalisation and local interests.

The process of globalisation has been becoming stronger and more intensive the globalistic movement has been expanding itself, coming into all areas of our planet and into all pores of life. The differences in the world are being reduced, while the relation between nations are being intensified. The level of inter-dependence is higher, while the number of isolated autonomous units is lower.

Nowadays it is not possible even for the largest civilizations, heading towards their survival and further strengthening of their own identity, to develop themselves in isolation and closeness. In many countries period of isolation equal poverty and suffering. 

Further development of modern world with the domination of modern IT technology does not allow the existence of any territorial and cultural closed-in identities and it also includes intensified dialogue between different cultures and creation of a new global world rooted in difference of cultures and dialogue between civilizations. 

It should also be kept in mind that global economic processes -development of technology and mass communication, trade) tourism and financial institutions and accompanying migration processes bring by themselves the problem of mutual acceptance among representatives of different nations and civilizations. 

Migration movements, without precedent, representing a kind of social phenomenon, create new forms of life and blend different traditions and customs, what raises up the issue of integration and coexistence level of the representatives of different cultures. 

Although these processes of integration and getting accustomed to each other proceed mainly in a peaceful and correct manner, there are still numerous cases in which problems of the encounter of different cultures have never been resolved, so that tensions always cause new conflicts. 

This problem is additionally complicated by the fact that globalisation brings through further development and progress of overall humankind to creation of new identities, which are in majority cases more open than the existing ones, what due to a probable danger of ruining traditional modes of thinking and already defined systems of values arouses certain reserve and uneasiness with the people who either do not approve this process or do not understand it. They explain this process as an attempt of some cultural models of ruining from inside cultural grounds of other civilisations with the help of media campaigns, lead exclusively by individualistic mode of thinking. 

As a consequence of this, opposition and refusal of all positive external influence is created in some cultural identities, which feel jeopardized by those processes, so that under excuse of preserving their tradition and identity they retreat into the framework of their own culture and civilization> what often results even in full radicalisation. 

Such occurrences represent a warning and appeal to all of us to put additional effort into the process of getting closer to other civilizations, into learning how to better understand others, how to live in pluralistic world, how to embrace identities of others. 

It is necessary to that regard to open ourselves fully towards others, to intensify the exchange of knowledge and experience and to build up a dialogue. That is the only manner in which problems can be resolved, disappointments and dangers avoided and life made brighter to both us and others. 

Internet and other highly technological IT solutions certainly may improve the communication ~d dialogue and make it easier, but still it is the indirect and face-to-face conversation, which even in 21st century represents n decisive factor in resolving political, economic and other issues. 

Mr. Chairman, 

Dialogue between civilizations must be included into our every day life as its integral part, in South-Eastern Europe even more so than in any other part of the Continent. The analyses of economic and political situation in the region point out to a much more favourable situation than in earlier periods. All the countries from the region have already been included into European processes and they are highly committed to strengthening peace, stability, democracy and respect for human rights through honest and permanent dialogue. This is how they confirm their determination to take control over their own fate and face the main challenges in the region. 

The open and honest dialogue is what this part of Europe needs more than ever. Continuous exchange of views and the highest-level dialogue will enable a better usage of resources from different cultures and religions and will create pre-conditions for further development of co-operation and stabilisation of circumstances in the region. It is only through acceptance of differences as a natural category that it will be possible to build peace, democracy and brighter future.

BiH is a special place for promotion of dialogue between different religions, cultures and civilisations. By using the basic principles of tolerance, by taking care of their own religious, cultural and national identity and by accepting others in their differences, peoples of BiH arc trying to bear witness to a probability of coexistence of different cultural circles and to putting - together pieces of a new mosaic of common culture.

In the country, which has still been curing its wartime wounds, traumas and physical pain and which will for a long time remain saddled by tragic heritage of the last war, we try to use open dialogue and conversation even on the most painfully issues as means of looking for paths of reconciliation and forgiveness.

We are highly aware of the fact that this aim is reachable only through the unity of difference and not by ignoring and degrading the differences or by making one's own culture and nation absolute. We are also aware that solutions cannot be found in narrow-mindedness, but in preserving one's identity and harmonizing it with the identities of others.

It is obvious that in the coming period we will have to work even harder on the promotion of cultural differences and methods of dialogue conducting and that we already have to start preparing our young generation for a new living mode, rooted in tolerance and full respect for other nations and cultures. 

We are firm in our wish to build up the society, worth of a human being, the society in which highest moral norms will be respected) because it is only in that kind of society that is possible to create genuine culture of living, culture of dialogue and modem community. An honest and well-cared for dialogue between nations and national minorities, rooted ill equality, rule of law, respect for human rights and cultural differences, will be of extreme importance in this process and will contribute to final and genuine reconciliation between nations of BiH. 

Mr. Chairman, 

The today’s gathering is an additional proof of the joint aspirations and solidarity of the countries from South-Eastern Europe for reaching a clear perspective for joining European structures through building permanent dialogue and strengthening democratic institutions of the system. 

I firmly believe that a constructive exchange of views on all aspects of dialogue between civilisations will give significant contribution to better understanding between different national and cultural groups in the region and will also further improve favourable climate in relations between our countries. 

I expect the outcome of the today's Conference to send a clear signal to the international community about the preparedness of the countries of the region to use intensifying of dialogue as a means of promoting further peace, stability and prosperity not only of this part of Europe but also wider. 

Thank you for you kind attention.