CVIJANOVIĆ: BIH'S PATH TO EU MUST NOT MEAN STRIPPING SRPSKA OF ITS POWERS

BANJA LUKA, OCTOBER 13 /SRNA/ - Serb member of the BiH Presidency Željka Cvijanović told SRNA that BiH's path towards EU membership was complicated and burdened by attempts to use it to centralize BiH, stressing that stripping Republika Srpska of its powers was unacceptable.

Cvijanović said BiH's European path was hampered by a lack of awareness that all the elements could be brought together into a complex system capable of functioning in an organized manner. She added that the EU should take a pragmatic approach, which was currently lacking. "We cannot accept the EU path becoming a path towards stripping Republika Srpska of its powers, but we can accept it being a path on which our powers contribute to the organized functioning of all elements or levels of government. We have always said that this is possible. However, if it is an either-or situation, then it is difficult to see how such a system could function," Cvijanović said on the podcast of the Media System of Republika Srpska - SRNA. She pointed out that it was up to the EU to decide whether to adopt a more pragmatic and practical approach to the issue or whether everything would be reduced to areas where EU integration was progressing more easily. "I believe that the EU will certainly undergo some transformations as well. This is a new world, after all, and some rigid positions will have to be abandoned and certain adjustments made," Cvijanović said. She stressed that the core of the problem lay in the fact that Republika Srpska was being treated with disregard, with attempts being made to take powers away from it, while everything was channelled through BiH institutions, even though those institutions had no jurisdiction over many matters related to the European path. "We must take reality into account, act accordingly and assess where our interests lie," Cvijanović said. She noted that every state and government was assessing its own interests today, adding that Republika Srpska supported reforms that would create a better environment in society. "However, reform does not mean transferring something to the BiH level. Reform means actually doing our part at every level of government through specific measures to make that environment better," Cvijanović said. She added that she believed this was possible, provided there was a pragmatic approach. "On the other hand, if you want to live in illusions and spend an unlimited number of years talking while nothing happens, then there is no progress," Cvijanović said.