Spain and Italy don't consider 2010 as lost year for Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Spanish EU presidency, strongly supported by Italy, wants to organise a new round of the so-called "Butmir process" next month. With the forthcoming October elections in mind, the underlying theme is: "We should not assume that 2010 is already a lost year for achieving positive changes in Bosnia and Herzegovina."
The process, bearing the name of Sarajevo's airport, was launched last year jointly by the United States and the EU with the aim of promoting the constitutional changes necessary to put the country on the path towards EU integration.
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It has not yet been decided where this meeting should take place - in the Spanish capital Madrid or in Sarajevo. Besides EU and US representatives, as in the Butmir process, all leaders of the political parties of the three constitutional nations of the country - Bosniaks , Serbs and Croats - should take part.
Italian foreign minister Franco Frattini and his Spanish colleague Miguel Angel Moratinos, who also together worked on the organisation of the EU-Western Balkan high level conference slated for June in Sarajevo, are eager to take the initiative in encouraging the leadership of all three ethnic groups to draw and implement at least the minimum set of amendments necessary to bring the Bosnian Constitution in line with the European standards.
The aim is not as ambitious as it was previously for the Butmir process. The process failed to achieve an agreement on constitutional reform, which is needed for a better functioning of the state, a necessity for Bosnia's progress towards European integration.
Some are pessimistic about the chances of the new round of talks however. The main promoters of the Butmir process, Washington and London, after unsuccessful talks in Butmir, believe that there is little room for making a breakthrough in the year of the general elections.
"We understand that we are now too close to the general elections. The political leaders in Bosnia are keen to misuse, in one or another way, our efforts to make constitutional reform for their election campaigns, so our involvement could be counterproductive," said a senior US diplomat.
On the other side, Madrid and Rome believe that there is still time to make one last effort to achieve some reforms before elections. Without such reforms, the EU will not even consider eventual formal application by Bosnia and Herzegovina for the membership of the EU.
For now, Bosnia and Herzegovina is the only country in the Balkans - apart from Kosovo which is not recognised by all EU member states - that has not applied for EU membership. But Spain and Italy are also aware that without direct and active involvement by US official in the talks, their chances of getting some positive results are very limited.
"A lot will depend on the synergy and coordination on the Bosnia issue between EU High Representative Catherine Ashton and American deputy secretary James Steinberg who had the leading role in the Butmir process before. With the Lisbon Treaty in force, the role of the EU presidency is weaker than before, and a more important role is now given to the High Representative", said an EU official.
Possible future good news for Bosnia and Herzegovina is the forthcoming report by the European Commission on the visa liberalisation process to be presented in spring. In a best case scenario, given that the European Parliament strongly supports visa liberalisation with Bosnia and the necessary procedure in the Council of Ministers, Bosnian citizens can expect to start to travel to EU countries without visas later in the year.
Thus they will enjoy the same rights to travel to the EU without visas as are already enjoyed by the citizens of Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia. The hope from all sides is that the EU will take a decision to lift visas for the citizens of B&H before the general elections, boosting the chances for pro-European forces in the country.