BiH maintains its negotiating position

 

The Council of Ministers of BiH today, in the second part of its 16th session, upon the proposal of the Directorate for European Integration, adopted the Report from the meeting of the delegations of BiH and the European Commission for negotiations on concluding the Protocol to the Interim Agreement on trade and trade issues between the European Community, on one side, and BiH, on the other side, in order to take into account the accession of the Republic of Croatia to the European Union (EU), which was held in Brussels on 29 May 2015, reports the Patria News Agency.

The Council of Ministers of BiH maintains the adopted negotiating position and the mandate given to the BiH Delegation for negotiations, fully respecting the Stabilization and Association Agreement which does not recognise the term traditional trade.  

The Directorate for European Integration of BiH is tasked with informing the entity governments and the Government of Brčko District of BiH in writing about the current status of negotiations, and the reasons why Bosnia and Herzegovina is not abandoning the stance stated in the adopted negotiating position.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BiH will also inform the diplomatic-consular missions about the current state of negotiations between BiH and the European Commission, with the aim of undertaking activities to present the BiH position.

The BiH Delegation for negotiations is tasked with submitting the information to the Presidency of BiH for information, and the Directorate for European Integration of BiH to implement the adopted conclusions.

These conclusions were adopted after the Council of Ministers of BiH was informed that Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Union have not found a mutually acceptable solution on signing the Protocol to the Interim Agreement on trade and trade issues, in order to take into account the accession of the Republic of Croatia to the European Union, even after three rounds of talks. 

Bosnia and Herzegovina has offered a compromise on the mutual increase of existing tariff quotas for sugar, fish, and wine, whereby BiH is prepared to approve an increase in tariff quotas from Annex IIIe of the Interim Agreement for quantities of average three-year imports of these goods into Bosnia and Herzegovina from Croatia (in the period 2009 – 2011).

It was emphasized once again at the session that Bosnia and Herzegovina wants to reach a solution that satisfies the interests of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Union, it was announced from the Council of Ministers.