Željana Zovko

Objavljeno: 23.5.2022.

EU Parliament and US Congress call for respect of Dayton Paris Peace Agreement at Transatlantic Legislators’ Dialogue

Paris, 23 May 2022

Members of the European Parliament and representatives of the US Congress met in Paris on 21 and 22 May for the Transatlantic Legislators’ Dialogue. It was the 84th inter-parliamentary meeting between delegations from the two institutions and the first in person meeting since the pandemic. Among the participants was also Željana Zovko, Vice Chair of the European Parliament Committee of Foreign Affairs and EPP standing rapporteur on the US.

The joint statement signed by the co-chairs underlines the united position of the two delegations on transatlantic cooperation and their position on common challenges, mainly in light of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. One of the subjects covered is the shared concern on the situation the Western Balkans. In particular, the participants declare in the statement that they recall the importance of the Dayton Paris Peace Agreement and the implementation of relevant European Court of Human Rights judgements and local courts’ judgements as the best way to preserve stability in the Western Balkans. In addition, the statement calls for respect of the Good Friday Agreement.

“With the joint statement, both delegations of legislators showed their commitment on peace and stability in and around the EU and agreed that that stability can only be preserved if the existing peace agreements are fully respected and implemented.” Zovko stated and added that the joint statement paid particular attention to those peace agreements forged with the cooperation of EU and US, such as the Dayton Paris Peace Agreement and the Good Friday Agreement. “There was a strong common support for the European accession procedure of the countries in the region.” Zovko stated

Other issues covered by the joint statement are the common fight against disinformation and deterrence of Russia, the prospects of relations with China, energy security and transatlantic cooperation on trade and technology. On Sunday, the meetings were symbolically held in the house of Jean Monnet, one of the founders of the European Union and a strong supporter of close transatlantic relations.

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