Brussels, 16/04/2010 (Agence Europe) - The EU welcomed the declaration of reconciliation made on Wednesday 14 April by Croatian President Ivo Josipovic, who addressed the parliament of Bosnia-Herzegovina in Sarajevo. He said he regretted the role that Croatia had played in the war in Bosnia. Josipovic also bowed before a monument erected in the village of Ahmici, in central Bosnia, where 116 Muslim civilians had been killed by Croatian forces of Bosnia, on 16 April 1993. “We very much welcome the statements made by the president of Croatia as a step towards building better relations across the region”, said Stefan Füle, the commissioner for enlargement and neighbourhood policy. “The Western Balkans have had a troubled and painful past. It is important that this past does not act as a brake on progress towards a common future as members of the EU”, he said. EU membership depends on each individual country's ability to meet accession conditions, including regional cooperation and the maintaining of good neighbourly relations. “In this context, the words of President Josipovic are important not just for relations between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina but for the region as a whole”, said Füle. (H.B./transl.jl)