Following the debate which took place during the sitting of 23 April 2009,the European Parliament adopted by 305 votes to 23 with 12 abstentions a resolution tabled by the Committee on Foreign Affairs on the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It expresses its concern at the constant deterioration of the political climate in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Parliament considers that European integration is in the best interests of the entire population of the Western Balkans. It regrets, therefore, the inability of BiH politicians to agree on a common political vision for their country, compromising for reasons of short-sighted nationalism the objective of joining the EU, an objective which would bring peace, stability and prosperity to BiH citizens. Members remind political leaders in BiH that joining the EU means accepting the values and rules on which the EU is based, including respect for human rights, solidarity between peoples and communities, and tolerance. They urge political leaders to abstain from hatred politics, nationalist agendas and secessionism and condemn unilateral withdrawal from reforms.

Parliament also recalls also that the prospect of EU membership has been offered to BiH as a single country, not to its constituent parts, and that, consequently, threats of secession or other attempts to undermine the sovereignty of the State are completely unacceptable.

If BiH seriously wishes to join the EU it should comply with certain specified requirements, and in particular the State should establish public institutions based on the rule of law and capable of efficient decision-making. Those institutions must be functional, authoritative, independent of political influence and adequately resourced. These requirements can be achieved only through a constitutional reform of BiH based on certain criteria. Members stressed that the number of administrative levels involved in managing the country should be proportional to BiH's financial resources and should be based on an effective allocation of responsibilities.

Parliament takes the view that the Office of the High Representative should assist the BiH authorities in achieving and properly implementing all of the five objectives and two conditions set by the Peace Implementation Council (PIC), and that, until this is done, the Office should remain in place and ensure the proper implementation of the DPA.

Parliament regrets the paucity of attention paid by the Council to the deterioration of the political climate in BiH and the lack of determination shown so far by Member States to tackle the situation in the country seriously and in a coordinated fashion.

It calls on the Council to endorse the requirements imposed on BiH and to grant the new EU Special Representative a strong and clearly defined mandate and the necessary human resources to facilitate the adoption of reforms and promote dialogue with civil society. It should also grant him the means to bring all the EU's instruments to bear in order to promote real progress in the country, including sanctioning powers (e.g. suspension of EU financial assistance), and full and sustained political support.

The Council had an exchange of views on Bosnia and Herzegovina and made the following conclusions:

firstly, the Council welcomed the appointment of Ambassador Valentin Inzko as EU Special Representative/High Representative and discussed the continued planning for a reinforced EU presence in Bosnia and Herzegovina; it reiterated its full support to the European perspective of Bosnia and Herzegovina and called upon the local political leaders to engage thoroughly and with stronger determination on the necessary reform agenda in order for the country to make substantial progress on its way towards the European Union; it encouraged Bosnia and Herzegovina to continue fully implementing the Interim Agreement. On the other hand, the Council remaining deeply concerned about the overall political situation in BiH and called upon BiH's political leaders to refrain from nationalist rhetoric and unilateral actions; it reconfirmed its readiness for a transition from the Office of High Representative to increased local ownership, supported by a reinforced European Union presence, as soon as the conditions are met; it acknowledged the progress of the EU preparations, presented by the SG/HR and the Enlargement Commissioner, for its strengthened engagement in Bosnia and Herzegovina under a reinforced, double-hatted EUSR/Head of the Commission Delegation; the Council urged Bosnia and Herzegovina to maximise its efforts to complete fulfilment of the five objectives and two conditions set by the Peace Implementation Council Steering Board. To this aim, the Council strongly encouraged continuation of the Prud/Odzak process, urging that the widest possible consensus be found and called for the commitments undertaken in this context to be rapidly translated into further progress and concrete legislative results.

The Council noted that, despite the challenging political environment, the security situation in

Bosnia and Herzegovina remained stable.

The Council welcomed the progress on the preparatory work for a possible evolution of Operation ALTHEA. It agreed to keep this work under regular review so that a decision on the future of the operation could be taken once the necessary conditions had been met. In this context, the Council reiterated that the possible evolution of operation ALTHEA would need to take political developments into account. It noted that cooperation with NATO on operation ALTHEA was continuing to work smoothly.