Izetbegović in Strasbourg with European Parliament Rapporteur for BiH

Member of the Presidency of BiH Bakir Izetbegović met in separate meetings with European Parliament Rapporteur for BiH Christian Dan Preda, Chairman of the EPP Group Manfred Weber, and Chairman of the Friends of BiH Group in the European Parliament Jasenko Selimović

The topic of the talks held today in Strasbourg was the European path of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Izetbegović emphasized that Bosnia and Herzegovina is at a crossroads between a clear and well-trodden path of European integration and side roads that pull the country back into divisions and conflicts.

Izetbegović used the opportunity to inform his interlocutors about the manipulations and instrumentalization of the “principle of federalism,” a seemingly benign linguistic formulation that gives wind to the sails of a retrograde political agenda, reminding that in Bosnia and Herzegovina, demands for “federalization” imply a deepening of ethnic divisions.

Therefore, Izetbegović once again warned that this support could be used for attempts at anti-Dayton territorial redrawing of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the creation of ethnically based federal units.

In the afternoon, Izetbegović will also meet with the President of the European People's Party (EPP) Joseph Daul.