Italy reported 423 coronavirus-related deaths on Thursday against 431 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections rose to 24,935 from 23,059 the day before.

Some 353,737 tests for COVID-19 were carried out in the past day, compared with a previous 369,084, the health ministry said.
Italy has registered 103,855 deaths linked to COVID-19 since its outbreak emerged in February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the seventh-highest in the world. The country has reported 3.3 million cases to date.
Patients in hospital with COVID-19 - not including those in intensive care - stood at 26,694 on Thursday, up from 26,517 a day earlier.
There were 249 new admissions to intensive care units, compared with 324 on Wednesday. The total number of intensive care patients slightly increased to 3,333 from a previous 3,317.
When Italy’s second wave of the epidemic was accelerating quickly in the first half of November, hospital admissions were rising by about 1,000 per day, while intensive care occupancy was increasing by about 100 per day.

The total number of intensive care patients slightly increased to 3,333 from a previous 3,317

A man wearing a mask walks through St. Mark's Square as the region of Veneto becomes a 'red zone', going into lockdown in an effort to reduce coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infections in the country, in Venice, Italy, March 15, 2021.

Italy reports 423 coronavirus deaths on Thursday, 24,935 new cases

Mexico’s government said on Thursday it would apply travel curbs on its southern and northern borders to contain the spread of COVID-19 as a U.S. official said the Biden administration planned to loan Mexico vaccines to combat the pandemic.

The foreign ministry’s announcement that Mexico would be tightening its border with Guatemala comes just as the country plans to step up enforcement efforts on that frontier to curb illegal immigration, according to a Reuters report.
Mexico has been pressing the U.S. government for a loan of vaccines to help its drive to tackle COVID-19, and President Joe Biden is under increasing pressure to reduce a recent surge in migrants from Central America reaching the U.S. border.
A U.S. congressional source said the mutually beneficial news of the vaccine and border decisions was not coincidental. A Mexican official did not immediately reply to a request for comment on whether the two announcements were linked.
Mexico’s Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard confirmed on Twitter the two countries are working on a vaccine deal and said that he would provide details of the “good news” on Friday.
Mexico’s foreign ministry said in a statement restrictions for non-essential activities on its borders with the United States and Guatemala would take effect starting on Friday, and would remain in place until midnight of April 21.
Meanwhile, the U.S. official said the United States plans to send roughly 2.5 million doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine that it is not using to Mexico in the loan deal.

Mexico’s Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard confirmed on Twitter the two countries are working on a vaccine deal

People queue to cross into the U.S. at the Paso del Norte border crossing bridge, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico March 1, 2020.

Mexico to tighten borders against COVID-19 as U.S. plans vaccine help

Europe's medical regulator said Thursday the AstraZeneca vaccine is "safe and effective" and not associated with a higher blood clot risk, after more than a dozen countries paused rollouts over health fears. The closely-watched announcement comes after the WHO and Britain's health watchdog both said the vaccine was safe, adding that it was far riskier to not get the shot as several countries face a worrying rise in coronavirus cases. 
-The committee has come to a clear scientific conclusion: this is a safe and effective vaccine- European Medicines Agency (EMA) chief Emer Cooke said Thursday after a probe by the body's safety committee. 
-The committee also concluded that the vaccine is not associated with an increase in the overall risk of thromboembolic events or blood clots- she added.
However, the agency "cannot rule out definitively" a link to a rare clotting disorder. 
The UK health regulator on Thursday also said there were no links between blood clots and the AstraZeneca jab, or the Pfizer vaccine. 
-There is no evidence that blood clots in veins is occurring more than would be expected in the absence of vaccination, for either vaccine- said June Raine, chief executive of the independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). 
And the World Health Organization (WHO) said again Thursday it was better to take the AstraZeneca vaccine than not, after saying it was looking into available data on the shot.

The furore around the jab has marred the global vaccine drive aimed at ending a pandemic that has killed more than 2.6 million people, and comes as several countries report jumps in new cases.

France recorded its highest daily caseload in nearly four months Wednesday, with the authorities set to announce on Thursday new measures.
-Let's be clear, we're in a third wave mostly down to the rise of this famous British variant- French President Emmanuel Macron said, referring to the more-contagious variant first detected in the UK. 
-The situation is critical. It's going to be very hard until mid-April.-Bulgaria and Ukraine readied for tougher restrictions to stem rising cases, while the WHO issued a grim update on rising infections in Central Europe and the Balkans.

So far, more than 399 million coronavirus vaccine doses have been administered globally, mostly in wealthier nations that have secured contracts with drug makers. 

AstraZeneca's shot, among the cheapest available and easier to store and transport than some of its rivals, has been billed as the vaccine of choice for poorer nations.
It is currently a vital part of Covax, which was set up to procure Covid-19 vaccines and ensure their equitable distribution around the world.
Countries ranging from France to Venezuela and Indonesia paused the rollout of the jab after several reports emerged of blood clots among people who had received the vaccine. 
The head of WHO Africa said Thursday she hoped the controversy surrounding the British-Swedish jab would not deter people from getting the vaccine on the continent, where more than 16 million vaccine doses, mostly AstraZeneca, have been distributed under the Covax scheme. 
-A lot of countries have doubts- about AstraZeneca, Matshidiso Moeti told reporters. 
-But we hope that will not create doubts around anti-Covid vaccines in general.-And in Britain, which has not halted the jab, officials insisted that an expected vaccine shortfall at the end of the month would not scupper plans to lift virus restrictions as the government has promised. 
Italy, the first European country to become engulfed by the pandemic, held a national day of mourning Thursday, with a ceremony in Bergamo, the northern city that became known as "Italy's Wuhan".
Italy chose March 18 for the memorial to coincide with the day in 2020 when the army had to step in to carry away scores of coffins from Bergamo's overwhelmed crematorium.
Images of coffin-laden camouflaged trucks crossing the city at night quickly became one of the symbols of the pandemic and still haunt the country today.

Meanwhile, vaccination efforts were under way in Chile, where 49 scientists and members of the armed forces working at a research station in the icy wastes of Antarctica got the jab, the first inoculations on the southernmost continent.

Antarctica was one of the last places on Earth to be affected by the virus, but on December 21, an outbreak was reported at a Chilean army base, with 36 people infected.
For some, vaccines have brought a sigh of relief -- especially for those working on the frontlines. 
Being vaccinated has allowed Colombian doctor Norberto Medina to return to his job at an intensive care unit in the capital Bogota feeling "more relaxed". 
Medina, 41, has lived all facets of the pandemic, seeing patients die on his ward, nursing others back to health -- and eventually staring death in the face when he contracted the virus himself.
-The pandemic has changed me forever- he told AFP after he returned to work, 54 days after he was diagnosed.
-It has made me more humane.-

The closely-watched announcement comes after the WHO and Britain's health watchdog both said the vaccine was safe, adding that it was far riskier to not get the shot as several countries face a worrying rise in coronavirus cases

EMA: The committee has come to a clear scientific conclusion: this is a safe and effective vaccine

EU health agency says AstraZeneca jab 'safe and effective'

Johann Sattler, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to B&amp;H and EU Special Representative in our country, received today Fahrudin Radončić, president of SBB. During the one-hour conversation, Ambassador Sattler emphasized the importance of meeting 14 key priorities, as well as the importance of constitutional / electoral reform in line with the opinion of the European Commission.
He also introduced Radončić to several other very important obligations which Bosnia and Herzegovina will be facing in the coming period.

Radončić thanked the ambassador for his great and impartial engagement to help domestic leaders find the necessary compromise. This would, which is extremely important, resolve the most difficult constitutional, legal and political issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina before the next election year.
Also, the importance of raising the standards of the election process itself in terms of making legal solutions that would prevent any election abuse and manipulation was jointly emphasized.

Radončić thanked the ambassador for his great and impartial engagement to help domestic leaders find the necessary compromise

The most difficult problems should be solved before entering the election year

Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Zoran Tegeltija talked today with Ambassador of France to B&amp;H Christine Toudic about current political and economic issues in B&amp;H and the world.

The officials assessed that the political relations between the two countries are very good and without open issues, but that there is room for enhancing economic cooperation, given the strength of the French economy and the investment potential of B&amp;H.
Tegeltija pointed out particularly good cooperation in the field of culture, assessing that the long-term cooperation of French regions and cities with local communities in B&amp;H contributes to the development and strengthening of friendly ties through various cultural, economic and educational contents.
He briefed Ambassador Toudic on the current political and economic situation in B&amp;H, the European integration process and the priorities of the Council of Ministers, and stressed that B&amp;H deserves candidate status, expressing the expectation that France, as a friendly country, understands and supports the position, B&amp;H Council of Ministers announced.

He talked today with Ambassador of France to B&H Christine Toudic

Tegeltija: B&H deserves EU candidate status

In the past 24 hours, 3,878 samples were registered with the Public Health Institute of the Federation of B&amp;H, of which 1,156 were positive for SARS-CoV-2. New cases have been registered in all cantons in the Federation of B&amp;H.

So far, a total of 501,260 samples have been tested in the Federation of B&amp;H, and SARS-CoV-2 has been confirmed in 98,058 people.
As of today, 82,924 patients have recovered in the Federation of B&amp;H. In the past 24 hours, 631 patients recovered. Currently, there are 12,012 SARS-CoV-2 positive cases in the Federation of B&amp;H.
In the past 24 hours, 42 new deaths were reported to the Public Health Institute of the Federation of B&amp;H. As of today, the number of deaths in the Federation of B&amp;H is 3,122, the entity Institute for Public Health announced.
In the last 24 hours, at the Institute of Public Health of the Republic of Srpska, the University Clinical Center of the Republic of Srpska, the University Hospital in Foča and the hospitals of Sv. Vračevi in ​​Bijeljina and Sv.apostol Luka in Doboj tested 1,387 laboratory samples, and coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) was confirmed in 543 people.
In the last 24 hours, 15 deaths have been reported to the Institute of Public Health of the Republic of Srpska, in which the presence of the coronavirus has been confirmed.
So far, 47,993 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Republic of Srpska, and a total of 2,420 people have died who have been tested for coronavirus. In that B&amp;H entity, 37,342 people have recovered so far, and a total of 216,863 people have been tested.
Today, 39 new cases were registered in the Brčko District of B&amp;H after testing the 81 samples, and one recovery was recorded.

Currently, there are 12,012 SARS-CoV-2 positive cases in the Federation of B&H

So far, a total of 501,260 samples have been tested in the Federation of B&H, and SARS-CoV-2 has been confirmed in 98,058 people

B&H registers 1,738 new cases of coronavirus, 57 persons died

The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is expecting the Russian side to sign a contract for the supply of 500,000 doses of Sputnik V vaccine today.

The delivery of the first 100,000 doses of this vaccine to the Federation of BiH is expected next week.
FB&amp;H Prime Minister Fadil Novalić confirmed this at today's extraordinary session of the House of Representatives of the FB&amp;H Parliament, which is underway, and was convened due to the worsened epidemiological situation in FB&amp;H.
In his introductory address, Novalić explained the difficulties regarding the purchase of vaccines against COVID through the COVAX mechanism and added that the agreed price of Sputnik vaccines is 14.31 euros per dose.
FB&amp;H Minister of Health, Vjekoslav Mandić, also addressed the deputies at this session, saying that the current measures to combat coronavirus infection have been in force for four months in the Federation of B&amp;H and that the question is how much some cantons have respected them in the meantime and that it is necessary to continue with these measures and adhere to them consistently.
The Minister of Health, as well as representatives of the Crisis Staff of the FB&amp;H Ministry of Health, who also addressed the previous part of today's extraordinary session of the House of Representatives, reminded that in the meantime the cantonal levels in FB&amp;H have been authorized to introduce more restrictive measures, depending on the epidemiological situation in their environments.

The delivery of the first 100,000 doses of this vaccine is expected next week

FB&H Prime Minister Fadil Novalić confirmed this at today's extraordinary session of the House of Representatives of the FB&H Parliament, which is underway, and was convened due to the worsened epidemiological situation in FB&H

Novalić: The signature for Sputnik V vaccines is expected today

An extraordinary session of the House of Representatives of the FB&amp;H Parliament has begun this morning, with the only one item on the agenda - the worsening of the epidemiological situation in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

At this session, MPs are expected to vote on measures to mitigate the effects of the epidemic.
Formally, the session began with the verification of the mandate of MP Majra Dautbegović instead of the incumbent MP Salem Marić, who in the meantime was elected to another position incompatible with the previous one.n

MPs are expected to vote on measures to mitigate the effects of the epidemic

FB&H Parl. HoR holding a session on the worsening of epidemiological situation

I hope that this issue of procurement of vaccines in the Federation of B&amp;H is really resolved and completed, I hope that they will arrive, said the President of the People and Justice Elmedin Konaković for the Avaz portal.

- I am really trying not to upset our public with any comments for a month now, in this third wave of the pandemic. Of course, we are all shocked by the behavior of higher levels of government. I testify that as a Canton, we have tried to get vaccines at 20 addresses, but in every place the wall was actually administrative because we are a lower level of government, and they tell us that they are waiting for the Federation of B&amp;H and the state to address - Konaković pointed out.
He added that he will certainly have a comment on everything that is happening, but sometimes when the line is drawn.
- Nothing can surprise us from this FB&amp;H Government headed by Prime Minister Fadil Novalić. We are completely used to everything they do and we will be surprised if something good happens as a result of the actions of this government - Konaković emphasized.

According to him, the story for small children can be called a justification that vaccines could not be procured until now because they were waiting for someone from the Council of Ministers to say that the state cannot buy them.
- We follow the processes in the world, we see that citizens in Burunda are being vaccinated, some third world countries have reached the halfway point, and we still do not have vaccines, except for donated ones. A special story is the circus related to the "AstraZeneca" vaccine that arrived from Serbia, health workers received the first dose, and now it is not known whether they will get the second one. And we have a new donation from President Erdogan. We also follow this tape regarding the Ad hoc body. It is illogical that the FB&amp;H Government claims for so long that it cannot procure vaccines and then in the midst of a pandemic it says that it can, that is complete nonsense. But I repeat once again, I try not to add oil to the fire at a time when there are too many infected and dead from the coronavirus - Konaković concluded.

I try not to add fuel to the fire at a time when there are too many infected and dead from the coronavirus, says Konaković

Konaković: We are shocked by the behavior of higher levels of government

Konaković for "Avaz": Nothing can surprise us from this FB&H Government headed by Novalić

The French government will impose tougher restrictions for some regions including Paris from this weekend to counter the accelerating spread of COVID-19 infections, spokesman Gabriel Attal said on Wednesday after a cabinet meeting.The announcement paves the way for new curbs in the greater Paris region, where intensive care wards are full and the hospital system is buckling with an incident rate of more than 400 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Attal said the new measures for Paris could include some form of confinement. Weekend lockdowns have already been imposed on top of a nationwide nightly curfew along parts of the Mediterranean Riviera and some areas of the north.
President Emmanuel Macron had hoped a vaccination drive could stave off a new pandemic wave triggered by more contagious variants, and prevent France from resorting to more measures that risk slowing the economy and cooping up citizens.
That approach is now being tested. The vaccine rollout has been slowed by an onerous European Union procurement process, supply difficulties, public scepticism and most recently the suspension of vaccinations using AstraZeneca shots in more than a dozen EU states including France.
Macron on Wednesday defended the EU COVID-19 vaccine strategy and said that within a few months Europe would be among the regions producing the most doses.
-We are living through the hardest weeks now. We know it- Macron said after welcoming Poland’s prime minister at the Elysee Palace.
The new restrictions will be announced by the prime minister on Thursday. They will not include school closures, Attal said.
The head of public hospitals in Paris earlier warned that the virus was running amok in the capital and surrounding departments, an area that accounts for about a third of economic activity.
-The virus is not under control- Martin Hirsch said.

The announcement paves the way for new curbs in the greater Paris region, where intensive care wards are full and the hospital system is buckling with an incident rate of more than 400 cases per 100,000 inhabitants

Seagulls are seen on an empty beach of the Promenade des Anglais during the first local weekend lockdown imposed to slow the rate of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) contagion, in Nice, France, February 27, 2021.

France to impose tougher COVID-19 curbs on Paris, other regions

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas demanded on Wednesday that Russia respect foreign correspondents’ right to report after an official warned German journalists of possible reprisals in a tit-for-tat row.

Earlier this month, Russia’s foreign-facing state television station RT accused the German government of putting pressure on lenders, including Commerzbank, to close the bank account of its German office.
Germany has denied that while Commerzbank declined to comment on individual clients.
Russian-based German journalists were summoned to a video conference on Monday at which, according to a participant, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned that Moscow would have to respond if Berlin did not back down over RT.
-Press freedom is not up for negotiation- Maas wrote on Twitter. -That is possible in Germany and it must be the case in Russia too.-The spat adds to strains between Russia and the West.
Though heavily dependent on Russia for energy imports, Germany has condemned the imprisonment of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, who was arrested on his return from Germany after treatment for poisoning in Russia.
Showing the importance to Russia of the goodwill of Germany, a major buyer of its energy, RT last November promised a full German-language TV channel in addition to its current online selection of programmes.
Several countries, including the United States, have labelled RT state propaganda, while British regulators have repeatedly investigated it for breaches of impartiality rules.

Russian-based German journalists were summoned to a video conference on Monday at which, according to a participant, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova warned that Moscow would have to respond if Berlin did not back down over RT

Vehicles of Russian state-controlled broadcaster Russia Today (RT) are seen near the Red Square in central Moscow, Russia June 15, 2018.

Berlin warns Moscow: don't restrict our journalists

Commenting on the fact that Federal Government, under the pressure from the ad hoc commissions and the FB&amp;H Parliament, managed to agree on the procurement of the vaccine in a few days, and after six months of delay, SDP leader Nermin Nikšić told „Avaz“ that it had already become disgusting how much the authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina show a lack of feeling, responsibility and concern for the health of citizens.

-Of course, the representatives of the same political parties are at the head of the Council of Ministers and the entity governments. However, this does not prevent the SNSD, SDA and HDZ from publicly arguing over who is responsible and why there are still no vaccines in Bosnia and Herzegovina, of course, except for those we received as alms. We had the opportunity to find out how Mr. Novalić (Fadil, op. cit.) as a citizen thinks that everything is too slow, but we do not know what he thinks as prime minister and how citizen Novalić would evaluate Prime Minister Novalić - says Nikšić.
He says it is unbelievable that the Council of Ministers and the entity governments cannot agree on measures to be introduced for the whole of Bosnia and Herzegovina. 
-The already proverbial lack of courage and responsibility in the Federal Government results in measures differing from canton to canton, which greatly reduces their effect despite the efforts of individual cantonal governments. . After ordering the Health Insurance Institute for two or three days to sign a contract for the supply of vaccines with two completely different suppliers, and since the director of the Health Insurance Institute did not do so, another supplier was found overnight,who apparently already has vaccines in the vaccine, to deliver 100,000 within three days, and it remains to be guessed what will happen to the remaining 400,000 - Nikšić wonders.

He points out that this is just a proof that the whole story about the law and the impossibility of procurement was not realistic.
- Time will show how realistic the procurement of all 500,000 vaccines is. I sincerely hope that this story will not end like the one about the purchase of respirators and that the speculations that have emerged as to where these 100,000 vaccines come from will not prove true.
At this moment, however, it is most important for that contingent of vaccines to come and for the mass vaccination of the population to finally start - Nikšić concludes.

It is disgusting how much the government in B&H shows a lack of care and responsibility for the health of citizens

Nikšić: Time will show how realistic the procurement of all 500,000 vaccines is

Nikšić for "Avaz": I sincerely hope that this story about the import of the first 100,000 vaccines will not end like the one about the purchase of respirators

Palestinians on Wednesday received their first delivery of coronavirus vaccines via the United Nations Covax programme supporting poorer areas, an AFP journalist in the occupied West Bank reported.

Earlier, some 60,000 doses of Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines allocated to the Palestinians under the Covax scheme arrived at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, according to an Israeli security source.
The UN's Middle East envoy, Tor Wennesland, welcomed the delivery.
-Those vaccines being sent to the West Bank and Gaza will be critical tools in our fight against the pandemic and for socioeconomic recovery- his office quoted him as saying.
The vaccines arrive as Palestinian hospitals are overwhelmed with Covid-19 patients, in sharp contrast to neighbouring Israel which has fully vaccinated nearly 46 percent of its population with twin doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.
The Palestinian Authority said that vaccination would begin on Sunday, primarily for those aged over 75, cancer patients and medical personnel.
Israel has provided 5,000 doses to Palestinian medical personnel, and vaccinated 90,000 Palestinians who work inside Israel or in Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
But while rights groups have urged it to extend its innoculation campaign throughout the territory, as the occupying power, Israel says health responsibilities there fall to the Palestinian Authority.
The United Arab Emirates has sent around 60,000 doses of the Russian vaccine Sputnik V to the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian enclave of two million inhabitants. 
The Palestinians are also to receive 100,000 Chinese vaccine doses and nearly two million other portions through the Covax scheme, set up by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Alliance for Human Rights. 
In Gaza, health authorities have confirmed more than 57,000 infected people, including more than 568 dead, since the start of the pandemic.
In the occupied West Bank, around 156,000 patients have been recorded, including more than 1,745 deaths.

The Palestinian Authority said that vaccination would begin on Sunday, primarily for those aged over 75, cancer patients and medical personnel

The vaccines arrive as Palestinian hospitals are overwhelmed with Covid-19 patients

Palestinians receive first batch of UN vaccines

The EU will unveil Wednesday a proposed European vaccine pass to ease travel, an idea pushed by tourist hotspots such as Greece that are desperate to save their crippled economies.

The proposal by the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, would create a digital certificate to show at airports and border crossings to prove that the traveller has received the precious jab.
The idea is to allow inoculated tourists to get around restrictions on non-essential travel that have spread across Europe, as a second and third wave of Covid-19 infections brought much intra-EU travel to a standstill.
-We don't call it a vaccine passport we call it a green digital certificate- EU commission spokesman Eric Mamer said Tuesday.
-It is a document that will describe the medical situation of the individuals who hold this certificate.-The plan, however, will face stiff resistance from many member states, a key concern being that those still awaiting vaccinations would be discriminated against.

Europe is trailing the United States and Britain in its vaccination campaign, with deliveries of doses delayed and some countries worried about the safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

According to the latest count by AFP, only 3.5 percent of the European population has been fully vaccinated.
The commission's plan is "very ambitious" with some "very difficult" questions yet to be resolved, said a senior EU diplomat.
Some member states are worried that the legal path to create the pass, which would include approval by European Parliament, will take too long, with the summer holidays just three months away.
The Commission is "working to have it done by June", Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton said on Sunday.
In addition, Hungary and the Czech Republic will fight to ensure vaccines not yet approved Europe-wide, such as Russia's Sputnik V, will be part of the scheme.
In the commission's proposal, member states would decide which vaccines to recognise.
Finally, some will be wary of Brussels using the Covid crisis to grab power from national governments, with civil liberties under threat. 
Health matters in Europe have traditionally remained a national matter.
-Vaccination can't be the only way to unlock all sorts of freedoms when there are people who can't or won't get vaccinated -– often through no fault of their own- said Israel Butler of the Civil Liberties Union for Europe.

The idea is to allow inoculated tourists to get around restrictions on non-essential travel that have spread across Europe

The proposal by the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, would create a digital certificate to show at airports and border crossings to prove that the traveller has received the precious jab

EU proposes vaccine pass to help save tourism

Members of the Presidency of B&amp;H, Šefik Džaferović and Željko Komšić held a meeting today with representatives of the Committee on Foreign Cooperation of Turkey (DEIK).

After the meeting, Džaferović said that the topic was increasing the number of production investments from Turkey to B&amp;H, and improving the business environment when it comes to Turkish investors.
-In this regard, we have heard a number of important things that we will introduce to other institutions in B&amp;H, and we invited Turkish businesses to invest in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The door will be wide open for them- said Džaferović.
During yesterday's visit to Ankara, a Memorandum was signed between the Agency for the Promotion of Foreign Investments in B&amp;H and the Investment Office of the President of Turkey.
Džaferović stated that today's meeting was an additional impetus for strengthening economic cooperation, and that Bosnia and Herzegovina has exceptional friendly relations with Turkey, and our goal is for them to be intensified in the business field as well, in parallel with cooperation at the political level.
-We want to make full use of the room created by the Free Trade Agreement, which gave us the most favorable status of all countries. Our goal is to raise the trade exchange to one billion dollars a year- Džaferović pointed out.
The meeting was organized by the Turkey-Bosnia and Herzegovina Business Council, and was attended by numerous business people in Turkey, the B&amp;H Presidency said.

It was organized by the Turkey-Bosnia and Herzegovina Business Council

Džaferović stated that today's meeting was an additional impetus for strengthening economic cooperation

Džaferović: Trade exchange with Turkey should reach one billion dollars a year

About 750 migrants and refugees arrived in the Una-Sana Canton (USC) in the first 15 days of March alone, confirmed the Cantonal Police Administration today.

-Entering the canton near Bosanska Krupa, we registered about 500 migrants in this month alone, while about 250 people arrived in the area near Ključ and headed to Bihać or Velika Kladuša. We stop them at these checkpoints, but we are aware that we cannot fully close the entire area, and that they will find their way to their temporary target destinations- said the USC police spokesman Ale Šiljdedić.
In four temporary reception camps in Bihać, Cazin and Velika Kladuša, all accommodation capacities are currently filled, considering that about 2,500 people are taken care of in them.
According to the USC Ministry of the Interior, almost the same number of migrants and refugees live in city streets, public areas and abandoned buildings as they do in the camps.
-It is obvious that we are facing a new migrant wave, which we expected with the arrival of warmer weather. We have to take certain actions, because a large number of people are staying in abandoned buildings and on the streets, without any supervision. We hope that an appropriate solution will be found for these people outside our canton, given that we cannot adequately take care of them and that it is really impossible and inadmissible to open new reception centers in this part of Bosnia and Herzegovina- said the USC Prime Minister Mustafa Ružnić. He also underlined the problem of insufficient cooperation and lack of interest of the owners of the facilities inhabited by a large number of migrants and refugees, with special emphasis on the lack of protection and neglect of the unfinished building of the Retirement Home, i.e., the former Krajinametal facility in Bihać.

This inforrmation was confirmed by the Cantonal Police Administration today

In four temporary reception camps in Bihać, Cazin and Velika Kladuša, all accommodation capacities are currently filled, considering that about 2,500 people are taken care of in them

Italy reports 423 coronavirus deaths on Thursday, 24,935 new cases

Mexico to tighten borders against COVID-19 as U.S. plans vaccine help

EU health agency says AstraZeneca jab 'safe and effective'

The most difficult problems should be solved before entering the election year

Tegeltija: B&H deserves EU candidate status

B&H registers 1,738 new cases of coronavirus, 57 persons died

Novalić: The signature for Sputnik V vaccines is expected today

FB&H Parl. HoR holding a session on the worsening of epidemiological situation

Konaković for "Avaz": Nothing can surprise us from this FB&H Government headed by Novalić

France to impose tougher COVID-19 curbs on Paris, other regions

Berlin warns Moscow: don't restrict our journalists

Nikšić for "Avaz": I sincerely hope that this story about the import of the first 100,000 vaccines will not end like the one about the purchase of respirators

Palestinians receive first batch of UN vaccines

EU proposes vaccine pass to help save tourism

Džaferović: Trade exchange with Turkey should reach one billion dollars a year

About 750 migrants arrived in Una-Sana Canton in the month of March

News

Italy reports 423 coronavirus deaths on Thursday, 24,935 new cases

Mexico to tighten borders against COVID-19 as U.S. plans vaccine help

EU health agency says AstraZeneca jab 'safe and effective'

The most difficult problems should be solved before entering the election year

Tegeltija: B&H deserves EU candidate status

B&H registers 1,738 new cases of coronavirus, 57 persons died

Novalić: The signature for Sputnik V vaccines is expected today

FB&H Parl. HoR holding a session on the worsening of epidemiological situation

Konaković for "Avaz": Nothing can surprise us from this FB&H Government headed by Novalić

France to impose tougher COVID-19 curbs on Paris, other regions

Berlin warns Moscow: don't restrict our journalists

Nikšić for "Avaz": I sincerely hope that this story about the import of the first 100,000 vaccines will not end like the one about the purchase of respirators

Palestinians receive first batch of UN vaccines

EU proposes vaccine pass to help save tourism

Džaferović: Trade exchange with Turkey should reach one billion dollars a year

About 750 migrants arrived in Una-Sana Canton in the month of March