Ulm/Novi Sad, 6th July - President of the AP Vojvodina Assembly Bálint Juhász and Vice-President of the AP Vojvodina Assembly Boris Novaković participated today, in the German city of Ulm, in the forum dedicated to the Danube cooperation, which as a part of the 13th International Festival of Danube Cities and Regions, organised mayors of Ulm and New Ulm, Martin Ansbacher and Katrin Albsteiger, and State Secretary for European and regional cooperation of the state of Baden-Württemberg, Florian Hassler.
At the beginning of the forum, the mayor of Ulm, Martin Ansbacher, asked the attendees to observe a minute’s silence to honour the former president of the AP Vojvodina Assembly István Pásztor, who was a great friend of the city of Ulm and the Danube cooperation. Speaking about Mr. Pásztor’s merits for the Danube cooperation, Ansbacher said that the Danube was not „just a river and water“ for Pásztor, but a symbol of connection and friendship, and that he lived in the spirit of togetherness of the Danube regions.
Thanking the mayor of Ulm for his warm words, President Juhász emphasized that our province was dedicated and actively
participated in available initiatives, programmes and strategies that promoted cooperation along the Danube for more than two decades, as well as that institutional cooperation was signed with the state of Baden-Württemberg, which extended to the cooperation of parliamentary committees and cooperation in the fields of agriculture, economy and education.
„Making links with the states, cities and regions, that the Danube River connects us with, is of great importance for our country, and for the AP Vojvodina. We are ready to continue supporting all initiatives aimed at partnering, networking and joint projects, which will reach our citizens directly“, stated President Juhász.
Therefore, once again, he launched the initiative for the Danube-Sava conference to be held in Novi Sad soon, to bring together all interested regions and cities connected by these two rivers.
„Our desire is to continue working on the promotion of the European integration of the Republic of Serbia, and of the entire Western Balkans, as well. In addition, we would like to realise the initiative of President István Pásztor to renew the Danube-Sava cooperation. Therefore, I call you to jointly hold a conference in Novi Sad where we will consider the possibilities of improving cooperation in the field of agriculture and information technologies, as well as to continue with all the activities we were working on before the pandemic,“ said President Juhász.
At the end of this forum, the participants jointly signed the International Festival of Danube Cities and Regions’ flag, specially designed for this occasion, dubbed „The Blue Bond of Friendship“. The text on this symbolic flag is the following: „The Blue Bond of Friendship! Let’s strengthen the Blue Bond of Friendship! Let’s look for what unites us! Let’s work together for peace, in a free, united and democratic Europe!“
The International Festival of Danube Cities and Regions in Ulm takes place every other year, and is visited by more than ten thousand people. Representatives of the AP Vojvodina, as one of the regions that initiated the cooperation of Danube cities and regions from the very beginning, traditionally participate in political and professional conferences, and meetings with representatives of other Danube regions.