Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) Bisera Turkovic and Minister of Defense of BiH Sifet Podzic met yesterday with the Ambassadors of the European Union (EU)the Member States to BiH and discussed the adoption of an action plan to strengthen EU security and defense policy – “Strategic Compass for Security and Defense”.
The EU delegation was led by Johann Sattler, Special Representative and Head of the EU Delegation to BiH, and Christine Toudic, Ambassador of France, who holds the Presidency of the EU, at a meeting at the BiH Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“Together with ambassadors and diplomats from other EU member states, they handed over a strategic document to BiH officials and stressed its importance in light of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, as well as major geopolitical changes. Sattler reiterated the importance of decisions on harmonizing BiH’s foreign and defense policy along with the common foreign and defense policy of the EU and pointed outthat in this way it is confirmed that the EU stands firmly behind the promise that BiH and the countries of this region have the prospect of membership, “ it was announced from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
As it was emphasized during the meeting, the goal of the “Strategic Compass” is to make the EU a stronger and more capable security provider in order to be able to protect its citizens and contribute to international peace and security. The “Strategic Compass” will increase the strategic autonomy of the EU and the ability to cooperate with partners.
During the meeting, it was mentioned that strengthening the European defense capability does not mean any diminution of the importance or activities of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
Also, the security situation in BiH was discussed, and the executive mandate of the Althea mission in BiH was once again supported.
