SARAJEVO
Ejup Ganic, who has served as a member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Presidency Council and was a close friend of first president late Alija İzetbegovic, stated that Bosnia and Herzegovina developed well in 21 years and was willing to become an EU member country.
Evaluating Bosnia's struggle for independence initiated on March 1, 1992 with the referendum to Anadolu Agency (AA), Ganic stated that the period of deciding on the referendum was much more complicated than today.
Reminding that Yugoslavia was falling apart and they have struggled to keep it together, Ganic said, "Bosnia and Herzegovina couldn't manage to protect Yugoslavia. Croatia and Slovenia had already drawn their own paths. Upon seing the "Great Serbia" plan of Slobodan Milosevic we faced a dilemma."
Emphasizing that the referendum was monitored by Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other international organizations, Ganic said, "The people wanted independence in the referendum. We also wanted independence for all of our citizens. We fought for the existence of the multicultural structure in this country. Our aim was never to tear Bosnia away from Yugoslavia."
Ganic said that Bosnia and Herzegovina was an independent state and a member of the UN however, it was still faced with many problems.
Upon being asked of "where he saw Bosnia and Herzegovina in 21 years," Ganic replied, "Bosnia and Herzegovina developed well in 21 years and is willing to become an EU member country. If EU continues to exist until then, Bosnia and Herzegovina will become a member of the EU."
Ganic stated that they no longer feared their enemies and said, "Our enemies are no longer as strong as they used to be. We are not afraid of the Serbs and Serbia. We stood against them when we had nothing and they were the fourth biggest army in the world."
Touching on Turkey's Balkans policy, Ganic said, "Turkey is a big country and it has great interest in the Balkans. Turkey makes significant investments in Bosnia and Herzegovina, however; these investments have still not reached the level expected by the people. We have good relations with Turkish authorities. We hope better days are to come."
