BiH, EU sign SAA

17/06/2008

"The big day for Bosnia and Herzegovina has finally come, when we can remember where the country and its citizens were 13 years ago and where they are now," said High Representative in BiH Miroslav Lajcak before the signing of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement in Luxembourg.

By Jusuf Ramadanovic for Southeast European Times in Sarajevo – 17/06/08

BiH Presidency Chairman Haris Silajdzic (left) and Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel (right) shake hands as EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana looks on after they signed the Stabilisation and Association Agreement in Luxembourg Monday (June 16th). [Getty Images]

After a long wait, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) signed the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU on Monday (June 16th). BiH Prime Minister Nikola Spiric, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn and Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency, signed the document in Luxembourg.

BiH Presidency Chairman Haris Silajdzic, BiH Foreign Minister Sven Alkalaj and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana also attended the event.

"On this big day for BiH, I wish to share the joy with all my compatriots. The door to the European future has opened," Spiric said.

Rehn called the signing a "turning point" for BiH, adding it was "a big European day" for the country.

Solana also congratulated BiH citizens. "I hope that we shall continue working in peace and prosperity," he said.

"All players in Bosnia and Herzegovina should prove from today onwards that they are capable, willing and able to complete their portion of the obligations," High Representative to BiH Miroslav Lajcak said.

Recent studies by the Office of the High Representative suggest that "85% of BiH citizens want the European perspective, which is huge support for the European process and a very strong message for any political leader in Bosnia and Herzegovina," Lajcak said before the signing.

The SAA governs relations between BiH and the EU under the three pillars of the Union -- the European Community, Economic Policies and the Common Market; the Common Foreign and Security Policy; and Justice and Home Affairs.

The agreement consists of ten chapters, which include the general principles, political dialogue, regional co-operation, free movement of commodities, movement of the labour force and harmonisation of the law.

By signing the SAA, BiH is also opening its trade market -- reducing or revoking customs duties on specific product groups envisioned in the agreement. Revocation of customs duties is expected soon for raw materials from the EU that BiH needs, as well as for other products that BiH has no opportunity to further develop.

The SAA will significantly change domestic business conditions. The state will collect less revenue from customs duties, but the economy will be free from major costs related to import duties. Some agricultural products will retain the highest degree of protection, and some will enjoy protection even after a six-year transitional period expires.