For the safe and stable future of the region, it is of crucial importance to speed up the European path of Bosnia and Herzegovina, said BiH Security Minister Nenad Nešić during a meeting with the European Union Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi.
At the meeting, it was emphasized that obtaining BiH candidate status for membership in the European Union should be used to speed up the fulfillment of EU recommendations and the establishment of cooperation with the security agencies of the Union.
“The agreed political goal of the Council of Ministers in this mandate is to work on joining the EU, and our cabinet treats it extremely seriously and with dedication. As Minister of Security, I insist on the only possible path to the EU – through agreements, compromises, talks and concrete results, and all this with respect for the Dayton Peace Agreement and the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” said Nešić.
Nešić informed Varhelyi that the last obstacles to the establishment of full operational cooperation with EUROPOL have been removed, which will be made official with the opening of the Contact Point office in the Ministry of Security in May and the sending of a liaison officer with EUROPOL to The Hague. Also, the establishment of cooperation with FRONTEX was discussed, and optimism was expressed regarding the signing of an agreement on cooperation with this EU agency.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is committed to the fight against illegal migration
Nešić is on a working visit to Brussels, where he also met with the EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs, Ilva Johansson.
With Commissioner Johansson, special attention was paid to the management of migration and the return of migrants to their countries of origin.
Nešić emphasized that Bosnia and Herzegovina is committed to more intensive cooperation with the countries of the Western Balkans and the European Union in the approach to migration management, especially in terms of preventing illegal migration and the joint fight against organized criminal groups.
Also, they discussed the joint fight against terrorism, prevention and fight against violent extremism, as well as cooperation and strengthening the fight against organized crime and corruption, BHRT reports.