Visit of the Honourable Peter Milliken, M.P., Speaker of the House of Commons, and a Parliamentary Delegation, Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia

From April 18 to 27, 2008, the Honourable Peter Milliken, M.P., Speaker of the House of Commons, led an official delegation to the Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia. The delegation was composed of Mr. Ed Komarnicki, M.P., Mr. Dave MacKenzie, M.P., Mr. Lui Temelkovski, M.P., Mr. Robert Vincent, M.P., as well as Mr. Patrick Kennedy, Chief of Staff, Office of the Speaker, and Ms. Stephanie Bond, Secretary to the delegation. This was the first Speaker-led delegation to visit the Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia from the House of Commons.

In the Republic of Macedonia, the delegation met with:

• His Excellency Branko Crvenkovski, President of the Republic of Macedonia;
• His Excellency Nikola Gruevski, Prime Minister of the Government of the Republic of Macedonia;
• Mr. Ljubisa Georgievski, President of the outgoing composition of the Assembly of the Republic of Macedonia;
• Mr. Lazar Elenovski, Minister of Defence; and
• Mr. Antonijo Milososki, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Macedonia.

In Bosnia-Herzegovina, the delegation met with:

• The Presidency, composed of: Dr. Haris Silajdzic, Chair; Mr. Zeljko Komsic, Co-president; and Mr. Nebojsa Radmanovic, Co-president;

• Mr. Nikola Spiric, Chair of the Council of Ministers;

• The Collegium of Speakers of the House of Representatives, composed of: His Excellency Milorad Zivkovic, Speaker of the House of Representatives; His Excellency Niko Lozančić, First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives; and His Excellency Beriz Belkić, Second Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives;

• Mr. Mladen Ivanic and Mr. Iliha Filipovic, Co-Presidents of the House of People;
• Ms. Ana Trisic-Babic, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs;
• Mr. Miroslav Lajcak, High Representative in Bosnia Herzegovina and European Union Special Representative;
• Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Bartnik, Commander of the Canadian Forces for NATO;
• Major General Richard O. Wightman, Jr., Commander NATO Headquarters Sarajevo / Senior Military Representative; and
• Major General Ignacio Villalain, Commander European Union Forces Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In Croatia, the delegation met with:

• His Excellency Stjepan Mesic, President of the Republic;
• His Excellency Ivo Sanader, Prime Minister;
• His Excellency Luka Bebic, President of the Croatian Parliament;
• Mr. Gordan Jandrokovic, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration;
• Mr. Ivan Margaretic, President of City Council of Dubrovnik; and
• Mr. Duro Market, President of the Tourist Bureau of Dubrovnik.

In addition to meetings, the delegation also participated in the Open Parliament in Bosnia-Herzegovina, organized by the OSCE, during which Speaker Milliken addressed students and provided an overview on the Canadian political system and governance structure. Participants raised issues of diversity, national identity, self-government, corruption in government, as well as universities and youth engagement. While in Sarajevo, the delegation met with Canadian NATO troops posted in the region at Canada House on the Butmir military base. In Croatia, Speaker Milliken addressed the University of Zagreb and the Croatian Chamber of Economy on Canada’s and member state’s role in NATO in view of Croatia’s recent invitation to join the alliance.

The official visit served to enhance relations between Canada and the Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia, and to strengthen interparliamentary communication between our countries.

The visit objectives focused on enhancing relations between Canada and the Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia by encouraging ongoing parliamentary dialogue and future parliamentary exchanges. The visit served to highlight the range of Canada’s interests in the region; foster discussion on foreign policies with respect to issues of international and mutual interest; and exchange on subjects of interest stemming from shared membership in multilateral organizations. The visit was successful in renewing and strengthening the ties between Canada and the Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia.

View report.