Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, will be in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, today, on 17 May. He will co-chair the first EU-Bosnia and Herzegovina High-Level Political Forum together with Borjana Krišto, the Chairwoman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Forum, further attended by representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Heads of Clubs, the Prime Ministers of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska, the Prime Ministers of ten Cantons of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Mayor of Brcko District, will discuss EU reforms efforts on the path to the European Union following the European Council’s decision to grant candidate status to the country.

In its October 2022 recommendation for candidate status to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Commission stated that it stands ready to continue supporting the efforts of Bosnia and Herzegovina on its European path by further engaging in policy dialogue and by setting up a high-level political forum to monitor the implementation of the steps outlined in the recommendation and report on further progress on the ground.

The Commission will report again in the 2023 enlargement package, expected in autumn, on the state of implementation of the 14 key priorities set out in the Commission Opinion on the EU membership application of Bosnia and Herzegovina.