Speeches

The 3 October, when Brussels initiated SAA negotiations with Serbia and Montenegro and accession talks with Croatia, was a frustrating day for BiH. It appeared that BiH might have remained the only country in South-Eastern Europe not included in the SAA process. Hopes for the future road to Europe seemed to vanish for a moment. But that would have [...]

Ten years ago next month, 60,000 NATO-led troops began deploying across Bosnia and Herzegovina. IFOR entered the country in force and in good order. Within days of its arrival, military bridges had been erected at strategic river crossings, helicopters dominated the skyline; and tanks and other fighting vehicles had taken up advance positions along [...]

In the course of this month, Bosnia and Herzegovina has substantially completed the strategic policy agenda that was laid out in the European Community’s Feasibility Study in November 2003. Economic elements in the Feasibility Study have included reforming the indirect tax system, creating a single business registration process, formulating a compr [...]

Six decades have passed since the United Nations was born into a world devastated by war.

Over the two days of this conference, friends from, and friends of, Bosnia and Herzegovina are engaged in a dialogue that is firmly based on experience and expertise. This would not have been – could not have been – a worthwhile exercise had BiH not already reached a strategic vantage point on its long hard road to stability and prosperity. We st [...]

One of the lessons made plain by the experience of the Central and East European transition countries in the last decade is that you cannot fix an economy piecemeal. You have to do the job holistically. Privatisation doesn’t work if you don’t upgrade the business environment as a whole; business environment improvements aren’t effective if they a [...]

I’m extremely pleased to be here today – not simply because we are recognizing a significant and welcome example of real commercial success in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but because this particular example contains many of the elements that we want to see replicated right across the industrial spectrum. When that happens, the privatisation process tha [...]

The immutable beauty of this landscape – sky and mountaintop, God’s grandeur – reflects our purpose today. This morning we honour the memory of 12 men and women who gave their lives eight years ago – for this country, in this place. The passage of time does not diminish their sacrifice, or our solemn duty to honour it.

Allow me first of all to commend Brigadier General Henning Larsen, Colonel Philip Lilleyman and the staff of the Peace Support Operations Centre for the work that is being done here. This is a gathering that in itself represents many of the positive aspects of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s recent development. We have with us this morning officers from [...]

I am particularly pleased to have an opportunity to participate in this conference because it deals with a key element in the sustained effort – which is now gaining momentum – to improve Bosnia and Herzegovina’s business environment.