The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Elmedin Konakovic, is very satisfied with the results of the numerous bilateral meetings he and the BiH delegation had these days on the sidelines of the regular session of the (UN) United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“We listen to the messages of world leaders at the assembly itself, because it is important to hear what they have to tell us at this moment. It is important to have information about geopolitical issues in the world. However, for me and the position I am in, it is important to have as many bilateral meetings as possible with people who make decisions related to BiH and our European path. Also, I use the opportunity to talk at these kinds of gatherings with people I would rarely meet in other circumstances. So today I had a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Argentina, who informed me that at the beginning of this month, visas for citizens of BiH to enter Argentina were abolished, which makes the passport of BiH at least a little more valuable and stable,” Minister Konakovic said yesterday.
He also emphasized the meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, which is a member of the European Union (EU). Konakovic emphasizes that the information he conveyed to his Latvian colleague contributes to the Baltic state being among those members of the EU that will support the story of the enlargement and the position of BiH within the EU.
Summarizing the intense working day in New York, the head of the BiH diplomatic mission also pointed out the conversation with the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, which, as Konakovic says, was very dynamic and interesting, and at which BiH representatives presented what has been done so far and our expectations on the European path.
“At the end of the day, we also had meetings with our strategic partners, the Minister of Tourism of Saudi Arabia and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). These were very productive meetings where we noted progress in our bilateral relations, which for some time, I would say, were frozen. I am glad that we contributed to the increase of the number of tourists from Saudi Arabia in BiH by 130 percent compared to the previous year. This is a direct consequence of the cancellation of visas. It is equally important that the visas for the UAE have been abolished, which we still need to confirm at the meetings of the Council of Ministers and the BiH Presidency. I think it will happen soon, by the end of this month. All these are the visible effects of our diplomatic offensive here in New York, but also earlier in other destinations,” says Minister Konakovic.
Evaluating the talks he had in recent days, the head of BiH diplomacy says that all his interlocutors are very satisfied with the results of the new government in BiH in the past seven months.
“Everyone acknowledges our progress on the European path, the adoption of five reform laws, the largest budget in the history of BiH, and numerous other moves. Of course, everyone noted this, especially the Europeans, as a significant progress of BiH on the way to the EU. However, due to the political activities of the Republika Srpska (RS) entity authorities, they expressed their concern at every meeting, because this is not the time to create any problems. This is the time when we should capitalize on all the good that has been done and bring us significantly closer to the EU. Citizens of BiH should feel this in their pockets very soon if we are serious enough to bring this story to an end,” Konakovic points out.
According to him, one gets the impression that Milorad Dodik has drawn the attention of all world leaders to himself. Konakovic believes that Dodik crossed that red line and that now when all world leaders talk about BiH today, they speak in two ways. First, about the results that have been achieved, but also about the negative activities from the RS, especially the attitude towards the High Representative “whose mandate and legitimacy no one in the UN building doubts”.
“We needlessly waste time and energy on that, instead of focusing on the opportunity that is presented to us,” concluded the Minister of Foreign Affairs of BiH.
In the coming days, Minister Konakovic is expected to have new bilateral meetings, including those with the heads of diplomacy of Turkey and India. After New York, the BiH delegation will travel to Washington, where meetings are planned with several congressmen and senators, as well as representatives of the State Department in charge of BiH and the Balkans.
