Head of the Delegation of the European Union (EU) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ambassador Luigi Soreca, said that today he held a productive meeting with the Minister of Communications and Transport of Bosnia and Herzegovina Edin Forto, before his trip to Brussels, where they discussed the current problems faced by professional drivers in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the region.
As announced by the Ministry of Communications and Transport of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Minister Forto will tomorrow participate in a joint meeting of Western Balkan ministers with representatives of the European Commission, with the aim of finding a solution to the problem of professional drivers as soon as possible.
“After the publication of the new EU Strategy on visas, the European Union and its member states will intensify efforts with partner countries, including BiH, to find solutions for extended short-term stays for certain professional categories, including professional drivers,” Soreca wrote on the X social network.
He added that new legislation at the EU level is also being considered, which would include a specific set of rules on extended short-term stays.
In the meantime, the EU, as stated by the ambassador, invited the competent authorities in BiH to coordinate activities with colleagues from EU member states and the region in order to make the best use of existing flexible and pragmatic solutions.
He also pointed out that the EU is ready to consider other measures related to transport or customs cooperation, as foreseen in the Growth Plan.
”In order to take full advantage of this unprecedented offer of greater integration into the European single market space through the Growth Plan, we call on the BiH authorities to make rapid progress in the implementation of the Reform Agenda,” said Soreca.
Forto: Professional drivers require urgent measures
Forto emphasized that the issue of professional drivers requires a more urgent solution, bearing in mind the direct consequences that the current rules have on the transport sector, supply chains and the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the entire region of the Western Balkans.
He added that he expects that this topic, after being included in EU strategic documents, will be operationalized as soon as possible through concrete measures.
“The adoption of the new visa strategy is a clear signal that appeals to the EU have borne fruit. But concrete steps are needed now, both bilaterally and at the EU level, because drivers can no longer wait,” said Forto.
He also reminded that Bosnia and Herzegovina has already sent an initiative to the Republic of Croatia to resolve this issue, emphasizing that it is through such agreements, with the support and active involvement of the institutions of the European Union, that the fastest and most concrete progress can be achieved.
They also discussed the continuation of reform processes in Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially in the context of the Growth Plan and the Reform Agenda. It was pointed out that it is necessary for the Council of Ministers to complete the remaining institutional steps as soon as possible in order to make the funds from the Growth Plan operationally available to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“Here we are talking about money that is standing due to procedural matters that can be resolved immediately, and citizens pay for every day of downtime,” Forto concluded, as announced by the Ministry of Communications and Transport of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
