Speaking to N1, the Head of the EU Delegation to BiH, Johann Sattler, said Thursday that there is "no way" that the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) entity headed by Fadil Novalic will remain in the technical mandate for the next four years.

“No way, there won't be another four years of technical mandate. It is time to form the Government in the FBiH. I can't even imagine that any responsible politician would have an interest in blocking [the formation of the new Government]. There will be pressure and reactions from the citizens themselves. There will definitely not be another four years of blockade and technical mandate,” Sattler said.

The Head of the EU Delegation to BiH pointed out that he feels confident the new FBiH government would be formed quickly, by the summer at most, because the state-level government “was formed in record time”, in only three months, which, he said, something not witnessed before.

“I like the fact that the new coalition has a programme basis. It’s clear to everyone that the changes are very necessary. I agree with [BiH Presidency Chair Zeljka] Cvijanovic, who says that it is necessary to proceed package by package [regarding necessary reforms]. It can’t be done all at once. I’m really convinced that this first step [the FBiH Government formation] will happen [by the summer],” he said.

Asked to comment on BiH Presidency member Zeljko Komsic’s statement that NATO is BiH's number one priority, and that the EU is secondary, Sattler said the situation on the ground tells a different story.

“That’s called freedom of speech and the right to an opinion. However, if you look at the acceptance rate of European integration and membership in NATO among citizens, it’s clear that the EU is, in fact, the only geostrategic goal on which everyone agrees. I think that that's a realistic approach. Current European integration has a much greater chance of rapprochement and eventual membership,” he said.

The EU diplomat also commented on the recent genocide denial by Republika Srpska (RS) entity President Milorad Dodik, despite the law banning genocide denial and war crimes glorification, and the RS delegation’s trip to Moscow.

“This is a big problem. Our expectations from countries that want to become EU members is that they must be aligned with our foreign and security policy. What we don’t expect and is completely wrong is the awarding [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, at the moment when he invaded Ukraine, as well as the RS parliament Speaker’s trip to Moscow for the anniversary of the invasion… this further isolates the RS and that is not in its interest. Genocide denial has no place in Europe,” Sattler stressed.