MEP Delara Burkhardt, Vice-chair of the European Parliament's Delegation for relations with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo wrote to European Council President, Charles Michel, on the occasion of his Friday arrival to BiH, urging him not ti waste time on ethno-nationalists but BiH citizens, instead.

She claims that his arrival is a strong sign of European solidarity but adds that through a joint statement with the negotiators, Michel planned to revitalise the so far failed talks on electoral reform after the parliamentary elections in October 2022.

“However, there are already blockades from Serb representative Milorad Dodik that he will not support the statement. His stance shows that he is not interested in a successful electoral law reform. Thus, he makes himself guilty of failure. His behaviour proves once again that talking to ethno-nationalists is a waste of time,” Burkhardt warned.

Instead, she believes it is necessary to listen to the BiH citizens, who have shown that finding common solutions to controversial issues is possible, even in a short time.

“Fifty-seven people participated in the BiH Citizens’ Council in March 2022 and proposed 17 clear recommendations to improve the country's situation. They expressed clear opposition to discrimination in the electoral law and asked for every citizen to be granted their right to vote and to run for office – regardless of their ethnicity,” Burkhardt wrote and pointed out that:

“[European] Commission President von der Leyen must now keep her word when she says in her closing speech to the Conference of the Future of Europe that she wants to involve citizens’ councils even more at the EU level. The 17 recommendations of the Citizens’ Council are a good starting point to prove that citizens’ demands are taken seriously and deserve Europe-wide attention!”

European Council President Charles Michel is coming to Sarajevo on Friday where he will stay for two days meeting with the country’s highest officials and political leaders.

BiH Presidency member Zeljko Komsic said during the Sarajevo Business Forum a few days ago, that the reason for Michel's arrival was definitely not the Election Law