Hahn: BiH cannot move forward if governments are not formed

BRUSSELS, (Patria) - European Commissioner Johannes Hahn said that 2018 was an excellent year for the Western Balkans. The most positive examples are North Macedonia and Albania, which took advantage of everything that had already been established in the strategy for the Western Balkans. 

„Albania has carried out a significant transformation of its judicial system and this process is fundamental for the fight against corruption and building trust in the judiciary.“ 

Hahn said that North Macedonia is now the only country that has no bilateral disputes with neighboring countries. 

He said that today is also an important day for BiH because the Commission adopted the opinion on BiH's membership. 

„This is a critical step in our relations and the Union will support the processes in BiH, and now it is crucial that governments are formed at all levels. We cannot move forward if there are no interlocutors in this process. At the level of the Federation as well as the state, given that the elections were held in October last year,“ Hahn said.

The Commissioner said that Serbia must reach an agreement with Kosovo.

„Kosovo must abolish tariffs on goods from Serbia and BiH in order to continue the dialogue with Serbia. I will try to resolve this situation in June. I do not know if we will succeed, but we will use every opportunity to resolve this issue that harms the entire region,“ Hahn said.  

He emphasized that much remains to be done in the Western Balkans, starting with the fight against corruption, organized crime, strengthening democratic institutions, reconciliation, good neighborly relations, and cooperation.  Hahn said that starting negotiations is a lengthy process.

„The entire process with Croatia lasted eight years and it is unrealistic that the new accession process will be shorter, but everything is based on achieved results. The entire process represents an incentive to change in an adaptable way and according to EU standards,“ Hahn said.