Commander Bissell: NATO always has a plan to help partners

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - I am pleased to have the opportunity to talk about NATO integration, because I believe that dialogue is very important for people to make informed decisions, said the Commander of NATO Headquarters Sarajevo, Brigadier General Marti J. Bissell in Sarajevo today, ahead of the round table "Bosnia and Herzegovina and Atlantic Integrations", which was held today at the Faculty of Criminal Justice, Criminology and Security Studies of the University of Sarajevo.

"I look forward to the opportunity to talk with students. I think it is very important for the citizens of BiH to decide what they want and to communicate that to their leaders. I think it was clear back in 2005/2006 that BiH wants to move towards NATO and that NATO has expressed its readiness for BiH to move closer," said Bissell.

Answering journalists' questions, the Commander of NATO Headquarters Sarajevo said that BiH still has a long way to go to membership in NATO.

What can be discussed now is improving cooperation with NATO. The state national mechanism is nothing more than a mechanism that will help determine what needs to be worked on," Bissell conveyed.

She also explained that "from the activation of the MAP to full membership, countries have taken between five and 19 years. MAP is not membership, but a type of additional partnership that BiH wants to further develop with NATO."

When asked if NATO has a plan in case of escalating problems in the region, Bissell said: "NATO always has a plan to help partners, both here and everywhere in the world. We have faith in the people of BiH to work together and resolve these issues internally."

"The path to NATO means stability for BiH, its citizens, and neighboring countries. A few years ago, the state leadership said we are moving forward, and for anything to change, the Presidency of BiH must make decisions.

BiH should respect that and follow that path. We must respect the process. I hope that politics will change and that it will be in the direction of full Euro-Atlantic initiative," said the Dean of the Faculty of Criminal Justice, Nedžad Korajlić.

He adds that the key steps are the rule of law and the fight against corruption.

Regarding Brigadier General Bissell's visit, Korajlić says: "I cannot rate the visit from 1 to 10, because it means much more to us."

"I am glad that NATO has become more involved in all these processes and that the General will explain some things to our students, professors, law enforcement agencies about what awaits us, what the steps are... And let's not expect someone to take us by the hand and lead us to NATO, because we have to take some steps ourselves for that," concluded Korajlić.

Brigadier General Bissell spoke at the round table about the process of NATO activities from the signing of the Dayton Agreement to the present day.

Among other things, she said that since 2009, more than 1,300 members of the Armed Forces of BiH have participated in missions around the world.

After the lecture, students had numerous questions for General Bissell, from demining operations to the fight against cybercrime.