The President of the European Commission, Ursula van der Leyen, said that Bosnia and Herzegovina has made the greatest progress in recent years compared to the previous decade.

Von der Leyen listed the things that Bosnia has done on the way to the EU and welcomed the efforts of the BiH authorities.

“The good news is that we will give the green light for the start of [EU accession] negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina,” von der Leyen said.

The Commission President listed in the European Parliament all the laws and negotiations with Frontex that were adopted by the BiH authorities and then said that in the coming period, BiH will have to do even more on the way to the EU.

“First of all, BiH is now aligned with our foreign and security policy. This is crucial in this tumultuous foreign political moment. They are also adopting important laws such as the Law on Prevention of Conflict of Interest. It was stuck for seven years. Now it has been adopted, as was the Law on Prevention of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism. Thirdly, the management of migration flows is improving. We have negotiations with Frontex and an agreement with Frontex that has only just begun. Fourth, the Ministry of Justice agreed that judgments of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia be included in the person's file. And we also have this steering committee that is finally functioning. Of course, even more progress needs to be made to really, really enter our Union. But we see that the state really wants to meet those criteria and that their citizens want to be part of our family. And now comes the good news. This is the reason why we will propose to the Council to open negotiations with BiH. So, without further ado, the message from the BiH side is clear. And that's why our message about them must be clear. The future of Bosnia and Herzegovina is in our Union. Thank you and long live Europe,” concluded von der Leyen.

After the recommendation of the European Commission on giving the green light to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the start of negotiations, it will be discussed at the Council for General Affairs of the European Union, made up of ministers in charge of European affairs, which will be held on March 19, followed by a summit of the European Council, made up of heads of state and the European Union government that will make the final decision on this proposal.