And one more. The 27 Heads of State and Government of the EU, meeting this Thursday at a summit in Brussels, formally approved the granting of candidate status to Bosnia and Herzegovina. This decision, which ratifies an agreement reached on Tuesday by the European Affairs Ministers, marks the start of a long process of accession for this Balkan country of 3.5 million inhabitants.
It comes more than a week after a summit in Tirana during which the European Union reconfirmed its commitment to the enlargement process in favor of the Western Balkans, which is experiencing a new dynamic in the context of the war in Ukraine.
The European Commission had recommended in October to the Member States to grant this status to this poor and unstable country, faced with secessionist threats. Bosnia will have to carry out major reforms to strengthen the rule of law, the fight against corruption and organized crime, the management of migration and fundamental rights, the member states specified.
Soon Europe at 35?
Seven countries are already officially candidates for EU membership: Turkey (since 1999, process now frozen), North Macedonia (2005), Montenegro (2010), Serbia (2012), Albania (2014), Ukraine and Moldova (2022). Accession negotiations have been opened with Serbia, Montenegro, Albania and North Macedonia. Kosovo, for its part, officially submitted its request on Thursday to obtain this candidate status.
Bosnia is divided between a Serbian entity, the Republika Srpska, and a Croat-Muslim federation, linked by a weak central power that is often paralyzed. This complex political system is inherited from the Dayton Peace Accords that ended the inter-communal war in which 100,000 people were killed between 1992 and 1995.