Brussels, 13/10/2010 (Agence Europe) - In Brussels, on Thursday 14 October, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will meet with the EU high representative for foreign affairs, Catherine Ashton, and with the permanent president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, and the president of the European Parliament, Jerzy Buzek. She will then attend a meeting of NATO foreign affairs ministers. The state of transatlantic relations and the main international policy questions (Iran, Afghanistan, Middle East, etc) will be at the heart of discussions between Clinton and her European hosts.
The European future of the Western Balkans will most certainly be evoked as the US secretary of state has visited Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia and Kosovo in recent days. On 12 October in Sarajevo, she called on Bosnia to overcome its ethnic divisions, to stabilise the country's institutions and to implement the political and economic reforms that are essential for one day meeting the EU's accession criteria. She called on Bosnia to follow the example set by the other Balkan countries which, she said, know there is no better way to reach stable economic growth and long-term political stability than integration into Europe. Bosnia-Herzegovina must copy this example if it does not wish to be left behind, Clinton said. In Belgrade, she encouraged the Serbs to begin dialogue with Kosovo as soon as possible in line with the resolution adopted on 9 September at the UN general assembly. (H.B./transl.jl)