Perceptions and Reality of EU Accession Process – BiH Parliamentarians in Zagreb and Brussels

Parliamentarians from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) are sharing the EU accession process experiences of the Croatian Parliament through sessions of ‘Parliament for Europe’ currently under way in Zagreb and Brussels 


This is the fourth major event this year under the ‘Parliament for Europe’ initiative of the EU Special Representative in BiH, which brings parliamentarians together with their counterparts from EU Member States and with EU officials to discuss ways of taking the BiH accession process forward. 


The Head of the Delegation of the EU to Bosnia and Herzegovina/EU Special Representative, Ambassador Peter Sorensen, said:


“Countries in the Western Balkans region are moving through the EU accession process. There is a huge amount of experience that can be shared, and I welcome the fact that parliamentarians from Bosnia and Herzegovina will take advantage of that in Zagreb. By examining the process in neighbouring countries, those in Bosnia and Herzegovina with the responsibility to deliver progress can find new insights and apply them to their own country.”


In Zagreb, 28 members of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly and the Entity and Brčko Assemblies will meet the Croatian Foreign Minister, Dr. Vesna Pusić and the President of the Croatian Parliament’s EU Integration Committee, Daniel Mondekar. They will also meet Croatian parliamentarians who work on EU integration issues.


The BiH parliamentarians will hear more about the challenges that Croatia faced during its EU accession process, and the successful strategies adopted by Croatian parliamentarians in order to meet these challenges. Previous sessions of the ‘Parliament for Europe’ have highlighted the necessity – borne out by the experience of successful EU accession countries – of coordinating parliamentary and administrative steps required for EU integration.


The BiH parliamentarians will then travel from Zagreb to Brussels, where they will have meetings with EU External Action Service Acting Managing Director for Europe and Central Asia Gunnar Wiegand, the European Commission’s Director-General for Enlargement Stefano Sannino, the Director for Bosnia and Herzegovina and other Western Balkan countries, Pierre Mirel, and BiH Ambassador to the EU Igor Davidović.


During the visit BiH parliamentarians will also meet Mr Nikos Chrysogelos, MEP (Member of the Delegation to the Western Balkans), Mrs Doris Pack (Rapporteur on Bosnia and Herzegovina for AFET), Mrs Marije Cornelissen (Vice-Chair of the Green-group, Member of AFET and Delegation for the Western Balkans) and Mrs Emine Bozkurt (Shadow Rapporteur on Bosnia and Herzegovina and Chair of the Friends of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the EP).

Europa.ba