I very much regret the postponement of the Roundtable foreseen for tomorrow 11 June in Sarajevo as a result of which I had to cancel my visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina. I urge all political and institutional leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina at all levels to do their utmost in order to finalise and start implementing the Reform Agenda that this country so urgently needs to prosper and to move closer to the EU.
In this regard, I call on all Bosnia and Herzegovina authorities to stand by their commitments, including to the European Union but most importantly towards their citizens. The country faces serious socio-economic challenges which require swift and bold decisions and actions putting the interest, stability and prosperity of the country and its citizens beyond party interests.
In this respect, I welcome the adoption of the Reform Agenda by the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Government yesterday and the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina today and commitment to sign it. I call on the government of Republika Srpska to take similar steps as a matter of utmost priority. This reform agenda is the result of extensive consultations among all levels of government in the country. The European Union is ready to support this reform agenda with substantial funds. However, these can obviously only be committed in case the reform agenda is properly adopted and implemented.
I very much hope that an agreement on the outstanding issues can be reached without delay in order to maintain and build on the positive dynamics created in the past months.
ST
