Crnadak: 78% of Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks Back BiH's EU Efforts

Crnadak: 78% of Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks Back BiH's EU Efforts

Bratislava, May 27 (TASR) – Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) accession to the EU has huge domestic support – of as many as 78 percent of Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks, BiH’s Foreign Affairs Minister Igor Crnadak said at a press conference in Bratislava on Friday.

Crnadak was received by Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Minister Miroslav Lajcak, with the top issues debated including Slovakia’s upcoming Presidency of the EU Council and BiH’s ambition to join the EU.

Crnadak stated his country must master the stabilisation and association treaties, noting that it has already undergone three rounds of negotiations.

“We don’t expect to be given any shortcut, despite friendly relations between the countries … but we hope to get its support,” said Crnadak in reference to Slovakia’s EU presidency in the second half of 2016.

Lajcak, for his part, stressed that BiH’s EU integration process will be one of Slovakia’s priorities during its EU presidency, with Slovakia supporting the Bosnian bid.

When it came to bilateral relations, Lajcak – the top representative of both the United Nations and the European Union for BiH in 2007-09 – said that there’s still unused potential in the economic sphere, even though significant boosts in both exports and imports have been recorded in recent years.

Lajcak’s bid to become UN secretary general allegedly wasn’t discussed at the meeting, with Crnadak stating that official talks are expected to come later.