The Council of the European Union adopted a set of conclusions Monday, urging the local leaders to end the crisis that has blocked the country for months now, and expressed their continued support for the presence of EUFOR peacekeeping forces mandated by the EU, saying they are for the extension of its operation on the ground.

The Council noted that they unequivocally support Bosnia’s EU perspective as a single, united and sovereign country, while, at the same time, deeply regretting the prolonged political crisis in the country and condemns the blockage of the State institutions.

In that sense, they urged all political leaders to renounce divisive rhetoric and questioning the territorial integrity of the country and instead to focus on fulfilling the 14 key priorities identified in the Commission’s Opinion on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s application for EU membership, endorsed by the Council in 2019, and in line with the interest of all citizens to advance towards the European Union.

“The Council welcomes the continued presence of Operation Althea, which, following the Strategic Reviews of 2017 and 2019, has refocused on its core mandate of supporting the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina in maintaining a safe and secure environment (SASE), based on a solid model of predictive intelligence. At the same time, the Operation continues to implement the other tasks deriving from the General Framework Agreement for Peace (GFAP) as well as the collective training with the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina (AFBiH),” the Council said.

They also acknowledged that these priorities were confirmed in the third Strategic Review of the Operation presented in June 2021 as part of the overall EU strategy for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“In this context, the Council reaffirms the EU's readiness to continue the executive mandate of the Operation under a renewed UN authorisation. The Council recognises the importance of continued coordination of EUFOR Althea with other international actors on the ground,” the Council concluded in their statement which you can fully read on this link.