Marić: BiH must use EU's 'panic' over Russian and Chinese investments

(Patria) - European Union Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Johannes Hahn is arriving in BiH. He is coming to a country where, half a year after the elections, we have neither implemented results nor established government. Analysts warn that political representatives in BIH expect a lot from the Commissioner and the EU, and point out that there will be no spectacular results from this visit, especially since we do not have a formed government.

"The European Union cannot dedicate as much time to us now as we expect. The EU is currently struggling with its own problems and challenges, with the large number of migrants arriving, and even more importantly, with the upcoming European Parliament elections, and the United Kingdom's exit from the EU, so they have too many of their own problems to intensely focus on ours," believes political commentator Ivana Marić.

In a statement to Patria, she says that "this visit will be courteous and diplomatic, where a positive message will be sent to the public."

"But what Hahn will tell our politicians will certainly be much stricter and more drastic. Our good fortune in misfortune is the increased number of Russian and Chinese investments in BiH, which neither the EU nor America approves of, as they like to have primacy in this region," Marić points out.

Explaining this statement, she emphasizes that this is precisely why the interest of both the EU and the US in BiH has increased.

"The EU and the US want to win this battle between the West and the East in this way, a battle we are not even aware of. Most citizens probably know nothing about it. It is a shame that we do not know how to use this to get something better for the citizens of BiH. It is not something we have deserved, nor something we should be proud of, but it is simply happening and we should at least get something out of it, in terms of more favorable EU conditions.

Let's remember how Bulgaria and Romania joined the EU without meeting the conditions. However, the question is how much this suits our politicians at all, whether their goal is truly to join the EU, or their goal is to move towards the EU for as long as possible, to create the illusion that they are interested in joining the EU, but not to actually join.

Once we join the EU and start opening chapters, it will also mean stricter control of public procurement, tenders, and the judiciary should be reformed and harmonized with the European legal heritage. I simply think that our politicians are more in favor of the EU in principle, but not in reality," adds Marić, emphasizing that we will wait for any reaction from the EU or any serious initiative after the implementation of the European Parliament elections, i.e., until the government is formed at the EU level.