EU Connect: European Commission to send additional questions to BiH

The Centre for Connection with the European Union – EU Connect welcomes today's decision by the BiH Council of Ministers to finalise the process of answering the European Commission's Questionnaire and states that this is definitely not the end of the job.

EU Connect points out that this is the finalisation of the most complex process, which has proven that BiH can function as a credible subject of international relations despite its decentralised political system.

We call on political parties in BiH once again to stop politicising the European path and to focus their activities on improving standards in BiH and bringing the country closer to the European Union. The process of answering the European Commission's Questionnaire and the functional coordination mechanism have shown that political leaders from opposing sides are united by the desire for BiH to join the European Union.

The Centre for Connection with the European Union points out that the European Commission will most likely ask BiH for additional answers, just as it did with all countries in the region. We deeply hope that the authorities will show maximum responsibility regarding the additional questions from the European Commission, despite the fact that 2018 is an election year.

We remind the public in BiH that the answers to the European Commission's Questionnaire are not a legal act, but exclusively a form through which the European Union is informed about the real situation in BiH.

We call on authorities at all levels to focus on implementing socio-economic reforms to which BiH has committed itself through the Reform Agenda. We also warn the central government and regional governments about the seriousness of the recommendations from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which has assessed that political instability and structurally weak growth in key advanced economies pose a high risk that could lead to material changes in the baseline trajectory related to BiH's arrangement with the IMF.