Seven European countries invited their colleagues from other European Union member states and the European Commission to open accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina at the summit of the European Council, which is being held on March 21 and 22, Politico reports.
The Friends of the Western Balkans, a group of countries that includes Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Slovakia and Slovenia, want to “take advantage of the momentum and the current opportunity”, it was stated in the letter, which the Brussels post had access to.
According to “Politico”, the Ministers of European and Foreign Affairs of seven countries believe that taking this step “will strengthen Bosnia and Herzegovina on its path to the EU and bring it one step closer to the EU”.
On the other hand, the letter adds, “failure to do so would weaken the EU’s role in the Western Balkans and send a negative message to the entire region, which was promised more than 20 years ago that its future was within the EU.”
“It is crucial to take advantage of the current momentum and make a decision to open accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina at this week’s European Council. The people of Bosnia and Herzegovina deserve the next step, and the EU must fulfill its promises,” Austrian EU Minister Karoline Edtstadler told Politico.
Last week, the European Commission recommended the opening of negotiations with BiH as the next step on the way to EU membership, but not all member countries are convinced that our country has done its homework.
