SARAJEVO – The EU and its Member States will step up efforts to find solutions to residency issues affecting certain professional categories from the Western Balkans within the EU, including professional drivers, stated Luigi Soreca, Head of the EU Delegation to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Soreca stated on X that the EU would work on the issue in cooperation with partner countries, including BiH, following the European Commission’s proposal last week of a new visa strategy introducing extended short stays for certain categories of third-country nationals.
“New legislation with a specific set of extended short-stay rules at EU level is also being explored. In the meantime, the EU encourages the relevant authorities in BiH to liaise with their counterparts in EU Member States and in the region make best use of existing flexible and pragmatic solutions”, Soreca stated.
He added that the EU is ready to explore additional related to transport and customs cooperation, as envisaged under the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans.
“To benefit fully from the unprecedented offer of greater integration in the European Single Market in the Growth Plan, we urge BiH authorities to make swift progress in implementing the Reform Agenda”, Soreca concluded.
