Bosnia’s EU accession requires pro-EU coalition – high representative

The EU can formally begin accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) when a stable and pro-European coalition has been formed, according to Christian Schmidt, the international high representative overseeing the implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement. The Dayton accords were signed in 1995 and ended the Bosnian War. The current Constitution of BIH is contained in the agreement.

Schmidt said the political window remains open for BiH, but only if the country can “look to the future” and establish a governing majority committed to European reforms, speaking at the European People’s Party congress in Valencia, north-east Spain, on Saturday 3 May.

Schmidt’s remarks followed months of political instability in Sarajevo and renewed secessionist threats from one of BiH’s two political entities, Republika Srpska (RS).

“Forming a new coalition is essential for Bosnia to take the next step toward European integration,” Schmidt told attendees in Spain, as quoted by N1. “The door to the EU is open, but only for those willing to walk through it together.”

Talks frustrated by assembly’s block on EU decisions

The European Council agreed to launch formal accession negotiations with BiH last March, but only once a set of key reforms, including judicial independence, anti-corruption measures and public administration reform, were implemented. The European Commission (EC) had earlier acknowledged “limited progress” in these areas in its October 2023 enlargement report, but called for sustained political will.

Since then, divisions within the tripartite presidency and repeated disruptions by RS politicians have raised doubts over BiH’s capacity to deliver. Last December, the RS national assembly instructed Serb officials to block all EU-related decisions in national institutions, drawing strong condemnation from the EU Delegation and embassies of the US, UK, Germany, France and Italy, who called the move a “serious threat” to BiH’s constitutional order.

BiH ‘geostrategic investment’ for EU – von der Leyen

Despite the impasse, Schmidt said the European path remains viable if domestic actors show “maturity and compromise”, amid growing frustration in Brussels over the pace of reform and the perceived impunity of obstructionist officials in RS.

BiH was granted EU candidate status in December 2022. However, it has remained the most fragile and fragmented of the six Western Balkan aspirants. Unlike Montenegro or Serbia, which have opened multiple negotiation chapters, Bosnia has yet to open formal talks due to its institutional complexity and lack of unified political direction.

EC President Ursula von der Leyen has repeatedly stated that enlargement is a “geostrategic investment” for the EU, but warned that the “rules must apply equally”. In April, she told the European Parliament that Bosnia’s progress would be judged on “concrete reforms, not promises”.

Schmidt’s appeal for a new coalition reflects wider EU efforts to stabilise Bosnia’s integration process ahead of the bloc’s 2025 strategic enlargement review. For BiH to move forward, the Council must confirm that reform benchmarks have been met and that sufficient political consensus exists in Sarajevo. Analysts warn that failure to do so could deepen the country’s drift away from Europe amid rising regional instability.