The European Commission has confirmed reports that visa requirements for the nationals of Bosnia and Herzegovina that were abolished in November 2010 could be introduced again due to a large number of asylum seekers from that country, European media reported on Monday.
After in 2010 a decision was made to lift visa requirements for Bosnian and Albanian nationals, several EU member countries - Germany, Belgium, Sweden and Luxembourg - found themselves faced with a considerable number of people who arrived in the EU without visas and then abused the asylum procedure.
Following reports from the local media that the EU could reintroduce visa requirements for the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Michele Cercone, spokesman for Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem, confirmed the Commission had noticed the increase in the number of asylum seekers.
The liberalisation of visa requirements is one of the most important achievements of the process of European integration of Western Balkans and Commissioner Malmstroem would like it to be maintained, Cercone said, adding, however, that Malmstroem was very concerned about the increase in unfounded asylum applications submitted by nationals of Bosnia and Herzegovina and some other Western Balkan countries.
It should be clear that visa liberalisation could be brought into question if some Western Balkan countries fail to fulfil their promises and reduce to the smallest number possible unfounded asylum applications, he stressed.
On September 20, Malmstroem sent letters to the ministers of the interior of Serbia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Macedonia, asking them to report to the European Commission on practical measures taken regarding the problem of increased numbers of asylum seekers.
Cercone said a ministerial forum of Western Balkan countries, to be held in Ohrid, Macedonia, on September 3 and 4, would provide an opportunity to discuss the matter.
