Prodi: Refugees must return for stability in Balkans

Date: 11/04/02

By David Cronin

THE return of refugees is a 'precondition for normalisation and stability' in the Balkans, Romano Prodi told a ceremony in Sarajevo this week.

The European Commission chief also said the EU's history provides an example for greater tolerance in Bosnia.

He was speaking at an event marking the tenth anniversary of the 43-month siege of Sarajevo.

'Confrontation, nationalism and extremism must give way to a new outlook,' he said. 'In a united Europe, there is simply no place for such attitudes or for those who hold them.

'Dialogue, cooperation and mutual respect are vital for the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

'There is no reason why the communities that make up this country cannot cooperate in the common interest - just as many other former enemies are doing so successfully within the Union.'

More than 1.3 million people became refugees or internally displaced people as the former Yugoslavia disintegrated in the 1990s.

The Sarajevo siege claimed 10,000 lives and left 50,000 maimed.

The return of refugees is a 'precondition for normalisation and stability' in the Balkans, European Commission President Romano Prodi said at a ceremony in Sarajevo.