The European Commission (EC) Wednesday recommended Bosnia and Herzegovina be granted candidate status for accession to the European Union (EU).

In a press release, the EC announced Bosnia and Herzegovina’s candidate status. The EC emphasized that the candidate status dictates that Bosnia and Herzegovina take steps towards reinforcing democracy, functionality of state institutions, rule of law, the fight against corruption and organized crime as well as media freedom and migration management across the state. The EC’s decision to grant Bosnia and Herzegovina candidate status is a part of the EC’s broader effort to support reforms and integration of the Western Balkans, including Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia and Kosovo.

In a press release following the recommendation, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Josep Borrell said, “Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine brings into strong relief the importance of EU enlargement, which takes on a new geopolitical significance.”

Bosnia and Herzegovina applied for EU membership in 2016. The EC’s 2022 enlargement package recommended the state be granted “candidate status,” a designation granted by the unanimous vote of the EC as part of the accession process. Accession to the EU is governed by Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union. It requires a state to respect the values of Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union, which states “the Union is founded on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities.”

The EC determines if a state has the conditions to accede to the EU. These determinations are largely based on the stability of political institutions guaranteeing democracy, the presence of a market economy, and the capacity to implement the acquis, a body of law which a state must adopt into candidate status states’ national legislation.