Legislators from NATO and partner countries will gather in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, on 19-21 March 2009 to discuss Balkan security and the region’s path towards Euro-Atlantic integration on the occasion of the 70th Rose-Roth seminar. The meeting, gathering some 40 members of parliament together with representatives of governments, international organisations and academia, is organised in cooperation with the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina and with the support of the Swiss Ministry of Defence.

Sabine Freizer, Europe Programme Director at the International Crisis Group, will give the keynote address on Thursday 19 March.

Selmo Cikotic, Bosnia and Herzegovina ’s Defence Minister, and Ana Trisic Babic, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, will present their country’s efforts towards NATO and EU integration.

Several high-level international officials will also speak at the seminar, including Raffi Gregorian, Principal Deputy High Representative, Brigadier General Sabato Errico, Commander of the NATO Headquarters in Sarajevo, and Brigadier General Stefan Feller, Head of the EU Police Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina. They will brief participants on Bosnia and Herzegovina ’s achievements since the conclusion of the Dayton Peace Accords over 13 years ago, and on remaining challenges. Participants will also assess the successes and failures of the international community’s actions, a few days only before the expected appointment of a new High Representative.

The seminar will also include a strong regional dimension. It will discuss regional co-operation on border management, organised crime and economic issues, and the region’s prospects for further Euro-Atlantic integration.

The situation in Kosovo will also feature prominently, with briefings from representatives of EULEX and KFOR, as well as officials from Belgrade and Pristina.

The final panel on Saturday 21 March will be devoted to justice and reconciliation, interethnic relations, and the role of civil society in the Balkans.

For further information:

Nato Parliamentary Assembly