Slovenian President Borut Pahor has sent a letter to European Council President, Charles Michel, calling for an accelerated enlargement process to the Western Balkans and for Bosnia and Herzegovina to receive unconditional EU candidate status.

In his letter, Pahor noted the situation in the Western Balkans, especially in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in light of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and the effects of the war on European security, as well as the European Union as a guarantor of security and stability.

“Although I sincerely support all efforts to give Ukraine and Moldova candidate status, I am increasingly concerned about the situation in the Western Balkans, for which we have always proclaimed a European perspective, but which is moving further and further away,” he wrote.

Pahor wrote that “the most obvious negative consequences” of this can be seen in Bosnia, adding that “nationalism and tendencies to change borders are growing, and all that leads to even greater instability, which endangers the security not only of Bosnia and its immediate neighborhood but also of the European Union.”

Pahor argued that Bosnia and Herzegovina should, of course, be expected to meet all the conditions that are necessary, but “the order should be different – so first candidate status should be granted, and then the conditions should be fulfilled.” He expressed the belief that this would strengthen the pro-European forces in the country and the dynamics of internal adjustment to European norms.

“I am sincerely convinced that the European Union is the answer to all the questions of the Western Balkans. Therefore, I ask you to take concrete steps towards a faster enlargement process in the Western Balkans, especially granting candidate status for Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Pahor wrote.