The European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Union's financing institution, signs with the Federal Government of Yugoslavia a Framework Agreement setting the legal and institutional framework for its lending activity in the country, as well as its first EUR 66 million (1) loan for urgent transport rehabilitation. The Agreements have been signed in Belgrade between Prof. M. Labus, Deputy Prime-Minister of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Mr E. Nowotny, EIB Vice-President. 

The EIB loan goes to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which will pass EUR 50 million to the Republic of Serbia and EUR 16 million to the Republic of Montenegro for works in their territory, including rehabilitation of Belgrade airport, the Port of Bar, as well as urgent road works. 

The EIB loan is provided under the current mandate for Central and Eastern Europe, which is in the process of being extended to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia following the EU's Council Decision of November 2001.

The EIB is financing projects in the Balkans under its current mandate for Central and Eastern Europe agreed by the EU Council of Ministers for 2000/2007, foreseeing EIB lending of up to EUR 8.7 billion in the ten Accession Countries and in five other Countries of South Eastern Europe, which do not have candidate status: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the FYROM.

In cooperation with the European Commission and the other multilateral financing institutions, the EIB plays an active role in the preparation of the reconstruction investment programme of South Eastern European Countries. The first group of infrastructure projects comprised 85 projects totalling EUR 4 billion. 35 projects are Quick-Start totalling EUR 1.1 billion. The EIB played a lead role in 14 projects, totalling some EUR 800 million.

(1) 1 EUR: 0.971400 USD, 0.613400 GBP