The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elmedin Konaković, in an address to journalists on Friday evening in Sarajevo, stated that 54 people are waiting for evacuation from Gaza, 27 citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina and their relatives.
It is also possible that the list of names will be expanded, Konaković adds, noting that about 500 people leave Gaza every day out of about 8,000 people interested in evacuation.
Noting that Israel and Egypt decide on the speed and order of the evacuation, Konakovic said that the Bosnian side will do everything it can so that its citizens return home. He hopes it will be in a few days, provided the current concept that foreigners can leave the area remains in place. Asked if there is any information as to how many BiH citizens are safe there, Konaković replies that no one is safe in Gaza in a situation where lethal missiles fall on civilian objects.
“I am praying to God that something bad does not happen to the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina or to others,” he said.
Otherwise, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina formed the Crisis Staff immediately after the beginning of the conflict, and its members are mostly in communication with Bosnia and Herzegovina. to the ambassadors whose dedicated commitment Konaković praised.
At this press conference, he spoke about the details of the Ministerial Conference entitled “A bigger, stronger European Union makes the EU ready for enlargement, and future members ready for accession”, which he attended in Berlin, from where he returned with positive feelings because the European Union, according in his words, more seriously and concretely than ever, it ‘shows its intentions towards the area of the Western Balkans’.
Opening the negotiation process by the end of the year would mean a lot for Bosnia and Herzegovina, he also stated.
“The European Union has offered a hand, concrete projects, funds, processes, and we have a historic opportunity,” said the Minister of Foreign Affairs of BiH, noting that now the political structures within BiH are on the move, from whom the EU seeks integration steps, not disagreements.
He called on both the position and the opposition to seriously understand “that we are close to a serious story” and instead of disagreements, act on the fulfillment of some of the 14 priorities from the Opinion of the European Commission and, in the future, on the desired approach to the European single economic market so that the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina feel benefits of progress on the European path.
“There was talk of a new 6 billion euros, 14 billion of old and 30 billion of IPA funds. That would be an injection for our economy and an opportunity that Bosnia and Herzegovina did not have before. The most important story is about integration into the EU single market, which would make our economies more competitive and create potential for investors. They could also open funds for subsidies in agriculture, which this country has not been able to do so far,” said Konaković, presenting the details of the meeting in Berlin.
He noted that there were discussions in the format of more than 40 participants, ministers from some governments dealing with European integration, as well as that Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova are still in focus, but also that the European Union is extending its hand to the area of the Western Balkans.
