The EU stands ready to finance capital infrastructure projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina but the investments continue to be jeopardised by its politicians' irresponsible behaviour, the EU Delegation to BiH said on Wednesday.

It said the Corridor 5c motorway section near Doboj inaugurated yesterday was an important project that could not have been realised without EU funding.

“The 6.1km section was completed thanks to an EU grant of €15 million, which facilitated further financing in the form of favourable loans worth almost €70 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development,” the Delegation said.

The 330km motorway on Corridor 5c passing through BiH has been under construction more than 20 years and works in the Serb entity of Republika Srpska (RS) began with the construction of that section.

The remaining 50 km was to have been built with the EU's financial support, but Brussels has suspended everything earlier this year in order to punish the RS secessionist policy of the BiH Presidency's Serb member Milorad Dodik.

The Delegation said “the country’s authorities are not using the full potential of EU funding mechanisms, with the risk of losing out on hundreds of millions of euros in investments in transport and energy infrastructure.”

Dodik said yesterday he would not scrap his political plans and that RS would build the motorway regardless of the EU's stance, finding other financing sources.

“If and when we complete the construction of the motorway will be decided by RS and no one else,” said Radovan Višković, the RS prime minister and Dodik's party associate.

The authorities of the Federation entity plan to complete their section of the motorway by the end of 2028. Funds for its completion have been ensured.