June 19^th

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure Zorana Mihajlovic, today, together with the directors of the companies Corrdor and Roads of Serbia, the heads of Nisava and Pirot districts and the mayors of Nis and Pirot visited the works on the construction of Corridor 10, a section from Bancarevo to Crvena Reka, where works on the asphalting of this road section began. “Sicevo Gorge, beside Grdelica Gorge, is one of the most difficult sections on Corridor 10. It is the sections on which we have been working day and night, and I want the citizens of Serbia to be acquainted with what we are doing and how much we are moving forward. After finishing this, then tunneling will be completed and by the end of the year we will have complete Corridor 10 “Mihajlovic said. The Deputy Prime Minister pointed out that in comparison with 2014, when 34 million cars passed through Serbia, by the end of this year, this number would be 54 million. “This year we will have 20 million more vehicles compared to four years ago. Serbia has a great position and we need to use it, “Mihajlovic said. Mihajlovic added that with the completion of Corridor 10, the number of fatal traffic accidents will be reduced by 10 to 20%. In addition, the time of transport of passengers and goods will be shortened, and the costs reduced. All this contributes to the greater economic growth of our country, “Mihajlovic said. Dragana Sotirovski, Head of the Nisava District, emphasized the importance of the state investing in this part of Serbia. Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic said that Corridor 10 was one of the most important projects on the territory of the City of Nis, which opened this part of Serbia for new investments.

In the last ten days, and after the celebration of the city festivities – the Days of St. Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen, but also after numerous manifestations before and after that, city leadership received numerous official responses, letters and congratulations from our country and abroad. On this occasion Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovis said:” Dear fellow citizens, I am particularly pleased to convey to you, the citizens of Nis, the messages that came from Greece, from the City of Serres, our twin city, but also from Austria, Italy, Russia, Bulgaria and other countries from which hundreds of guests stayed in our Nis at the time of the traditional celebration of the days of the city’s patrons – the Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen.
All those thank-you notes, all the greeting cards received from our guests, were sent to you – to the citizens of Nis – for a warm welcome, great hospitality and, as almost every letter highlights, for the unforgettable days and pleasant moments spent in our city at the traditional city festivities. I especially emphasize that I feel, and that I share with you my dear fellow citizens, extreme pleasure for receiving the official letter from the Mayor of the Russian City of Kursk, Mr. Nikolai Ivanovich Ovcharov, who, besides everything else, emphasized “he believed that by participating in the event by which we marked the traditional city festivities, the City of Kursk contributed to the preservation of the historical and cultural tradition of Nis and further strengthened the deep spiritual and inseparable connection that exists between the Serbian and Russian people. ”
Mr. Ovcharov also pointed out that “Nis was a modern city that was developing dynamically and was surely going forward, while maintaining the recognizable spirit of Orthodox culture”, especially emphasizing that “historians had the right in calling Nis the Imperial City – the place of the birth of Emperor Constantine during the reign of whom more than 1,700 years ago, Christianity has acquired the legal right to exist and further developed ” In the end, the Mayor Kursk wrote, I quote “that after the unforgettable events in Nis, he firmly believes that with the new impulses for his work and the inexhaustible energy he had the opportunity to see with the citizens of Nis, our city will develop even more quickly and become a real European metropolis “.
I express my great and sincere satisfaction and gratitude both on my own and on behalf of all of you, for this friendly and sincere message that came from Kursk, a city in Russia known at every point of the planet Earth for the legendary Kursk Battle during the Second World War in which one of the greatest victories over fascism was won, Mayor Bulatovic concluded.

June 15^th

The reception for the participants and organizers of the 5^th International Gastro-Tourism Festival was held last night at Nis City Hall. Mayor Darko Bulatovic welcomed the participants of the festival that attracted masters of cuisine and catering workers from 24 countries, to the city of Nis, which, besides its rich history and tradition, has been recognizable for hospitality and superior cuisine, which has been proven many times in cooking competitions around the world. The Mayor said that the city administration would fully support this manifestation and help technically and financially so that this festival would grow into biiger event the following year and become one of the brands not only of Nis, but of the entire southeastern Serbia. The organizer of the Festival is Association of Catering and Tourism Workers of Niš, and Zoran Mirasevic, from the Association, announced the most interesting event during the festival which was the preparation of a large 65 kg pancake and 3,000 liters of of famous dish from Leskovac. The work of the competitors would be followed by a team of judges composed of world-renowned culinary masters who would decide on the winner of the event, both team and individual winners in all categories. The reception was attended by Assistant Minister of Tourism Ms. Vera Trefald, and the Head of the Nisava District Ms. Dragana Sotirovski, who reminded that Serbian cuisine on the international culinary scene, was presented in the best way, above all thanks to the unselfish efforts of members of the Association of Catering and Tourism Workers.

As part of the city festivity celebration, the days of the city’s patrons Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen, the guest from the twin cities and friend cities of Serres (Greece), Kursk (Russia), Vienna (Austria) and Izmit (Turkey) visited the memorial room of the Serbian Army Land Forces. The delegations accompanied by Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic were welcomed by the Commander of the Land Forces Lieutenant Colonel Milosav Simovic, and he introduced them to the idea of ​​establishing such a setting and the process of the creation of the Memorial Room. According to General Simovic, the purpose of the Memorial Room and Museum is to save from the oblivion all soldiers, officers and civilians who were killed during the wars, from 1804 to the present, and to pay tribute to all those who sacrificed their lives for the creation of modern Serbia and the preservation of its freedom. Apart from the setting that includes an overview of the activities of the units of the Land Forces since their creation, the whole process of the creation of the Serbian state and army from the Middle Ages to the present is shown. Uniforms, weapons, flags, coats of arms and features of all units throughout history, reviews of the war events and battles of the Serbian uprising until the last conflicts in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija are exhibited. All commanders and heads of military units throughout history have been recorded, as well as cooperation with other armies, local self-government, state bodies and citizens’ associations. The greatest attention of the guests was drawn, however, by the memorial room with more than 16,000 names and photos of dead soldiers and civilians who died in all wars since the beginning of the 19^th century to the NATO aggression and the arrival of KFOR in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija, among which there are the names of the Greek soldiers who fought with the Serbian army in World War I, as well as the names of British, Russian, French soldiers and civilians killed in this area in the struggle for the liberation of Serbia from the occupiers.

Based on the results of the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia dated 31/05/2018 a positive trend in the number of tourists in the first four months of 2018 was realized in Nis. The results show that in April 2018 the total number of tourists increased by 15.9%, with the number of domestic tourists increasing by 11.8%, while the number of foreign tourists increased by 21.8% compared to the same month of 2017. Also, in the category of overnight stays, the increase is recorded, with 17.5% more tourists in total than in April 2017, with the number of domestic tourist staying overnight increasing by 15.9%, while the number of foreign tourists increased by 19.8%.

On the occasion of celebrating the days of city’s patrons – the Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen and in the honor of Nis citizens and the guests of the City of Nis, the central ceremony was held at Officers’ Mess Building. The audience was addressed by His Grace Bishop of Nis Arsenije and Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic congratulating their fellow citizens the days of the city’s patrons using the opportunity to draw the attention to the importance of the work of Constantine the Great and the connections that exist between past and present. Historian Nebojsa Ozimic, a writer or co-author of several books on Emperor Constantine spoke of the establishment of the Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Jelena as a city festivity.

After the recently signed Protocol on Twinning between the City of Nis and the City of Serres and according to the agreement of the signatories, the Protocol was also verified today in Nis, in front of the city councilors and city officials, who voted in the city parliament to formalize the relations between two cities. “For 150 years now, Serbia and Greece have, not only friendly, but also genuine brotherly relations, and our two nations have always been allies, on the same side of history. Whenever necessary, we stood by each other. The closeness of the two nations and the two countries has been confirmed many times over the 150-year long relationship between Serbia and Greece. Greece is still a true friend and partner of Serbia on the European path. One cannot take good relations fro granted, good relations have to be nurtured, they are being built, and today’s signing of the Protocol on Cooperation between the City of Serres and the City of Nis is a confirmation of the desire to consolidate and improve everything that has so far connected us, ” Mayor Bulatovic said. Mayor of Serres Mr. Petros Agelidis said that he was very honored to be in Nis together with his associates at the time of the city festivities and that the Twinning Protocol was verified on this special occasion.

Today is the Day of the Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen – the holy patrons of the City of Nis. The morning liturgy was held at the Church of Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen attended by Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic with his associates and other city officials as well as the guest from the twin cities of Nis, the representative of army and police forces.

The vigil at the Church of Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen and the handing over of the Labarum marked the beginning of the celebration in the honor of the city patrons Holy Emperor Constantine and Empress Helen. The Bishop of Nis Aresenije delivered the service on this occasion which was attended by city officials, church officials, the foreign delegation representatives, as well as large number of Nis citizens.

Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic and the Nis City Council Member for Culture Jelena Mitrovska welcomed the delegations from Vienna and Turkish Izmit at the reception held at Nis City Hall on the occasion of opening the Exhibition entitled Great Places of World History. Prof. Piero Bordin, the founder and the director of the Festival and Symposium Art Carnuntum, initiated 10 years ago a unique series of international events “The Emperors of Carnuntum – They Changed the World”. This project was also one of the reasons of the European Commission for awarding Carnuntum with the European heritage label.  Great Places Of World History Exhibition is also the part of this project and Nis/Naissus – birthplace of Constantine the Great –has been the partner in the since the beginning. This year is the European Year of Cultural Heritage. Also this year is the 70^th anniversary of the Declaration of the Human Rights by the United Nations in Paris on December 10^th, 1948. Both events have a connection to the Exhibition Great Places of World History. The Mayor stressed that he expected that co-operation between the partners in the project would continue with new activities related to marking the 70^th anniversary of the adoption of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Professor Piero Bordin emphasized that he expected all cities which have benn involved in the project so far to work together on the project continuation .He pointed out that the Edict of Milan published in 313 could be considered thew origin of the Article No 18 of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.