EU leaders grant Bosnia EU candidate status

European Union leaders agreed on Thursday to make Bosnia and Herzegovina a formal candidate to join the bloc of 27 nations. "Bosnia and Herzegovina was granted the status of candidate country today.

European Union leaders agreed on Thursday to make Bosnia and Herzegovina a formal candidate to join the bloc of 27 nations. "Bosnia and Herzegovina was granted the status of candidate country today. A strong signal to the people, but also a clear expectation for the new authorities to deliver on reforms," European Council President Charles Michel said in a tweet.

General affairs ministers of the EU countries had already agreed on the candidate status for Bosnia earlier this week. It will be joining other EU candidates - Albania, Moldova, the Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine - in the process to join the EU, which can take many years and involves complex negotiations on adjusting local laws to match those of the EU.