German Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and his British counterpart, Phillip Hammond, visited Sarajevo on 16 January 2015 to secure support for reforms in Bosnia and Herzegovina that, if implemented, will greatly improve life for all citizens of the country and unlock the next stage of its path towards EU accession.

In the course of the day, the two Foreign Ministers held meetings with members of the BiH Presidency, the Foreign Minister, Chairman of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH and with the leaders of all key political parties.

As a first step, the European Union has stated that it would take a decision on putting BiH’s Stabilisation and Association Agreement into force if an irrevocable written commitment to pursue the reforms needed on the EU integration path was agreed by the Presidency, signed by the political leaders and endorsed by the Parliament. Mr. Hammond said that if the necessary reform steps were then undertaken, the EU would support Bosnia’s submission of a credible application for EU membership.

“Success will depend on what Bosnia and Herzegovina does or does not do and more specifically what its political leaders do,” he said.

Mr. Hammond emphasized that even though the focus of the new initiative was on economic reforms, the issue of minority rights and implementing the coordination mechanism remained prerequisites for joining the EU.

“We need to see a momentum that will deliver a consensus for reforms. We know this will not be an easy journey and I want to be clear about this – there is no hidden agenda, the EU strategy is not about weakening the entities and strengthening the state,” he said. Mr. Steinmeier stated that a new window has opened for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“I don’t know how long the window will be open for, but you can be sure that this window will not be open forever.”

According to him, the discussions with government officials and party leaders affirmed his belief that it is possible to formulate a reform path that will greatly improve the living conditions of BiH citizens.

”Protests from citizens a year ago brought into stark relief the urgency of addressing other issues as well, stabilising the economy and stimulating the private sector, creating jobs, strengthening the rule of law and reducing bureaucracy and cutting the cost of government,” said Mr. Steinmeier.

The European Union has welcomed the written commitment agreed by the BiH Presidency and presented on 29 January and has called upon all party leaders to confirm their explicit support to the document in order to set a clear path for the European perspective of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Following completion of the domestic procedure, including endorsement by the BiH Parliament, the EU will respond as outlined in the Council Conclusions.

Last November the UK and Germany outlined the basic concept of the new initiative in a joint letter to the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, and the Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations, Johannes Hahn. It was presented to Western Balkan foreign ministers at a meeting in the British Embassy in Berlin. The initiative was approved by the European Foreign Affairs Council on November 17 and General Affairs Council on December 15, thus officially becoming the new EU strategy for BiH.