BANJA LUKA – Opinion on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s EU membership, published last week by the European Commission, lays out fourteen key priorities which show where the country is now and where it should go further, stated European Parliament’s Rapporteur for BiH Cristian Dan Preda in an interview for Nezavisne.
According to Preda, recommendations given by the Commission are crucial for advancing to the next stage of the integration process and should be implemented as soon as possible.
Among the most important ones he lists amending the Constitution so that the functioning of institutions and communication with the EU can be improved, as well as transitioning into fully functioning market economy.
The document, released at the same time as the annual Reports for the Western Balkan countries, did not recommend granting Bosnia an EU candidate status, for which the country applied in 2016.
“In this phase, the focus should not be on the question whether the glass is half full or half empty, but rather on meeting all the conditions”, stressed Preda, adding that the publishing of the document is important because it shows “that the door is open for BiH”.
He also commented on the fact that, eight months after the elections, Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina still has not been formed.
“It does not just make the process of getting a candidate status more complicated, but also slows down the overall progress on the European path”, he said.
The sooner the new government is formed and starts working on key priorities, the faster will the country receive the candidate status and begin with the accession negotiations.