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SARAJEVO, November 22 (FENA) - Minister of Foreign Affairs of BiH Bisera Turković met today in Sarajevo with the OSCE Secretary-General Helga Maria Schmid, to whom she pointed out that she expects the international community, including the OSCE, to use all mechanisms at their disposal to effectively stop the disintegration of the state and to enable the continuation of positive reform processes in BiH.
Talking about security issues, Turković emphasized the important issue of maintaining a sub-regional balance in armament.
"We see that the countries of the region often talk of strengthening their military forces and procuring new weapons. BiH is of the opinion that the security balance must not be disturbed and that it draws its foundations from the Dayton Peace Agreement. States have agreed that they can exercise control themselves. The question is who is interested and why the arms race? Having in mind the current situation, we believe that it would be more than useful to strengthen supervision and to have stricter control. BiH believes that in accordance with the agreements, the Armed Forces of BiH should be strengthened in order to meet the conditions for approaching NATO as soon as possible, within which we see a secure future for all," said Turković.
She also stressed at the meeting that BiH needs a modern and European election law in line with the European acquis.
"Reform of the election law must in no way be an excuse to block all other reform processes. The help of the OSCE in that process is welcome and of great importance," said Turković.
Schmid stated that the reform of the election process is not an easy task, saying that the adoption of amendments to the BiH Election Law is an important precondition for harmonizing the law with international standards, but also for restoring citizens' trust in the election process.
"The message of my visit is clear - stop the rhetoric of division, focus your attention on reforms that will bring benefits to your citizens and make a step forward in reforming the electoral process. State institutions must function at full capacity. Ultimately, it is citizens across BiH who pay the price for internal political instability, economic stagnation and lack of progress in implementing reforms. The high degree of migration is a reflection of this negative situation. I think it is very important that this country stays on the path of reform, and therefore I call on all leaders to act in that direction," said Schmid.
She says that the OSCE, through its Mission in BiH, will provide support to all processes and solutions aimed at creating better living conditions for all citizens.
Schmid expressed satisfaction that tomorrow she will meet with the Chairman of the Presidency of BiH Željko Komšić and members of the Presidency Šefik Džaferović and Milorad Dodik.
"I will also meet with the deputies from both houses of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly, as well as with the members of the Interdepartmental Working Group for Adoption of Amendments to the BiH Election Law, and with partners from the international community," added Schmid.
(FENA) S. R.
