On 4 December 2007, Olli Rehn, European Commissioner for Enlargement, and Mr. Nikola Spiric, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, initialled the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, in Sarajevo. This is the first contractual relation between the European Union and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and a key step towards future membership of the Union.
The Members of the BiH Presidency – Mr. Zeljko Komsic, Mr. Nebojsa Razmanovic and Mr. Haris Silajdezic – along with Mr. Miroslav Lajcak, High Representative and European Union Special Representative, witnessed the initialling ceremony.
Mr. Javier Solana, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, and Mr. Luis Amado, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Portugal (the country which currently holds the Union’s rotating Presidency) were, unfortunately, unable to attend as planned due to adverse weather conditions at the airport. Their messages of support were transmitted by Mr. Lajcak and H. E. A. Boltelho de Sousa, Ambassador of Portugal to BiH.
Government representatives – Ministers, Members of Parliament, Entity Prime Ministers, leaders of political parties, and many others – as well as members of the Diplomatic Corp and International Organisations, gathered for this historic occasion.
Ambassador Dimitris Kourkoulas and a substantial part of his team from the Delegation were also present, along with Mr. Osman Topcagic and members of his staff in the Directorate for European Integration, to see the first fruition of their long-standing efforts in this regard.
The atmosphere was both solemn and convivial, with the assembled guests spontaneously rising to their feet as one and applauding when the first set of initials had been affixed. Commissioner Rehn and Dr. Spiric themselves reflected the general mood: following the formal handshake which marked the end of the initialling, Dr. Spiric gave a celebratory “thumbs-up” sign to the audience and press, while Commissioner Rehn jubilantly waved his pen in the air.
The initialling was followed by speeches and a press conference.
Dr. Spiric said that the citizens of BiH have waited a long time for this wonderful moment and that, as of tomorrow, the country and its people will all embark on a general transformation of BiH society, for the SAA is a momentous task which requires focus to overcome the challenges ahead. He rejoiced in the fact that the country’s leaders replaced endless discussion with compromise, in the true spirit of Europe. He stressed that BiH must prove with concrete examples that it can assume its responsibilities and carry out the required tasks, including police reform, public broadcasting legislation, public administration reform, full co-operation with the ICTY, economic reforms, etc. He stated that BiH must draw on the example of Europe, so as to build the type of society that it has hitherto been unable to: the country has been given hope for a better future. This historic opportunity must not be wasted.
Commissioner Rehn expressed his pleasure at being back in Sarajevo for such an important day and being able to initial the SAA, which will bring concrete benefits to its citizens, such as increased trade and investments. If properly implemented, the SAA is the gateway to Candidate Country status. He congratulated the citizens of BiH for this achievement and its political leaders for acting in the true European spirit of compromise, so as to overcome the political crisis. He added that it is essential to keep up the momentum, so as to finish the SAA process and prepare for future challenges on the road to Europe. This day has been a great European day for BiH and is concrete proof that Europe wants it to join as soon as it is ready.
H. E. A. Boltelho de Sousa extended congratulations to the citizens of BiH and its political leaders, adding that his country is particularly pleased that the first contractual agreement between the European Union and BiH was achieved under the Portuguese Presidency. He offered continued and full support so as to carry out the reforms which are necessary for further integration, and welcomed BiH to the European family where it rightfully belongs.
Mr. Lajcak noted the great symbolic importance of this day after months of paralysis. The new agreement reached will ensure a better functioning of the Council of Ministers and Parliament, and the agreement on future police restructuring demonstrate that BiH is able to overcome challenges. It now has a good chance to catch up with its neighbours – the assistance offered by the various branches of the “EU family in BiH” (EUSR, EUFOR, EUPM, the EC Delegation) will continue to change in order to address changing circumstances, but the commitment to BiH and its European future will remain unchanged. He congratulated all for the success of this day, hoping that soon there will be further successes to celebrate, adding that this depends on BiH itself.
