High Representative in
London for Talks on OHR
Future

The High Representative and
EU Special Representative, Christian Schwarz-Schilling, has just finished a
meeting with Geoff Hoon,
Britain’s Europe
Minister. The High Representative and EU Special Representative is in
London today for a series of high-level talks on the
structure of the international presence in Bosnia
and Herzegovina after 30 June.

This afternoon, Mr
Schwarz-Schilling will meet with the Foreign Office’s Political Director,
John Sawyers, as well as with the Head of the Western Balkans Group, Michael
Tatham.

“I want to present a realistic picture of
Bosnia and
Herzegovina,” said Mr Schwarz-Schilling. “PIC members must make a thorough assessment before deciding on the
future of the OHR, and to do that they must have the best possible
understanding of the situation on the ground.”

The High Representative and EU Special
Representative is preparing the ground for a detailed assessment of the
country’s progress and conditions in the wider region ahead of the Peace
Implementation Council’s meeting on 26 and 27 February when the Council will
make a final decision on whether to end the High Representative’s mandate and
close his office.

During the meetings the High
Representative and EU Special Representative will focus on the readiness of
Bosnia and Herzegovina’s political leaders to take responsibility of their
country’s future, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s perspectives for continued
Euro-Atlantic integration through the Stabilisation and Association process – in
particular the prospects for police restructuring and PBS reform – economic
reform and government formation.

The High Representative and EU Special
Representative is preparing his own assessment of the situation in
Bosnia and
Herzegovina together with a recommendation
concerning the OHR’s future that he will send to PIC members in
mid-February.