Bosnia and Herzegovina is set to begin EU accession talks, with the European Commission set to announce on Tuesday, paving the way for the country to eventually become a member of the bloc.
The EU granted BiH candidate status in December 2022. The European Commission will now give a positive recommendation to start formal accession negotiations, they told Politico two EU officials and one EU diplomat.
Ukraine and Moldova are also determined to take a step further in the enlargement process, Telegraph reports.
The European Commission will propose on Tuesday the so-called negotiating frameworks, which set out the guidelines and basic principles for their accession talks. It is then up to the EU countries to discuss those texts.
Diplomats and EU officials warn that an agreement between the 27 European capitals - which is needed to formally start negotiations - is unlikely to happen before European elections in June.
For some EU countries, including Austria, it was vital that progress in Ukraine and Moldova go hand in hand with progress on the future accession of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The next step is now for EU leaders to discuss the recommendation for BiH at their meeting in Brussels next week.
To top the announcement, the foreign ministers of Austria, Italy and Germany all traveled to Sarajevo last week in support of the opening of accession negotiations.
At a joint press conference with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock last week, her Bosnian counterpart Elmedin Konakovic said he hoped there would be no "further disappointment," adding that it was "crucial" to keep in mind "what happens if Bosnia and Herzegovina does not continue on its European path."
The European Commission also decided to present a document on how to prepare within the bloc for future enlargement, particularly on how to absorb a war-torn country of more than 40 million people, such as Ukraine.
But that document, which was originally scheduled for February 27, has now been pushed back to March 20, according to the latest European Commission agenda seen by Politico. /Telegraph/
