European Commission recommends Bosnia and Herzegovina be granted EU candidacy status

By Busra Nur Cakmak

ANKARA (AA) – The European Commission recommended that candidate status be granted to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the EU’s enlargement chief said Wednesday.

Addressing the European Parliament, Oliver Varhelyi, the European commissioner for neighborhood and enlargement, unveiled the bloc's 2022 Enlargement Package.

Varhelyi said the Balkan country has taken a number of steps to be granted candidate status.

“Commission also underlines that the European Council called on the leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina to urgently finalize the pending constitutional and electoral reforms,” Varhelyi noted.

“The candidate status is an offer from Europe to Bosnia and Herzegovina and to the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina. We are doing this for the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina but it also comes with high expectations,” he added.

Following the October general elections, “we expect the legislators and governments at state entity and cantonal levels to be swiftly set up in order to focus on EU reforms,” said Varhelyi, adding that European Council will make the final decision “possibly in December.”

“The Commission stands ready to step up in support and to be a reliable partner along this road.”