The European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee (AFET) debated the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) yesterday, commenting on a report on BiH prepared by the European Parliament’s permanent rapporteur for the Western Balkans, Paulo Rangel.
Presenting the report, Rangel stressed the importance of meeting the 14 key priorities set by the European Commission for BiH in its latest opinion on BiH’s European Union (EU) membership, BHRT writes.
The report highlights two key issues that hinder the fulfillment of 14 key priorities, namely the secessionist rhetoric of the Republika Srpska (RS) political elite, including their withdrawal from state bodies, and the lack of political will to reach an agreement on changes to the Election Law.
Rangel thinks that a solution to two key issues would enable politicians to work on the judicial and social reforms requested in the European Commission’s Opinion.
What the report particularly emphasizes is that elections in BiH must take place in the autumn of this year, and calls on the EU to use all the tools at its disposal, including targeted sanctions against destabilizing factors in BiH.
”IPA 3, financial assistance from the EU to BiH, should be strictly conditioned by the return of political representatives to state institutions, and the ban on genocide denial and glorification of war criminals must be part of the Criminal Code and there is no compromise on that regard,” Rangel said.
He believes that BiH must comply with European foreign policy, especially sanctions against Russia and Belarus, because “BiH could be the next front of destabilization that the Kremlin would like to open in Europe”, which is why BiH should be included in the EU security front.
According to him, a compromise is needed regarding the changes to the Election Law of BiH, but if an agreement cannot be reached, he emphasized that the elections must be held in October.
Also, his opinion is that BiH deserves to be granted candidate status and that the granting of that status should be seen in the context of the war in Ukraine, expressing hope that this report will send a clear message that the EU will not allow BiH to become a new hotbed of crisis in Europe.
After the end of the debate on the Draft Report on BiH, the amendments of the members of the European parliament will be submitted, and the deadline is May 5th, while the Committee should decide on the final text of the report on BiH in mid-June.
E.Dz.
