To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of Bosnia and Herzegovina's progress towards meeting the conditions for closure of the Office of the High Representative; and if he will make a statement. (279700)

The last meeting of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) Steering Board on 25-26 March 2009 assessed that Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) had not yet achieved the five objectives and two conditions required for a closure of the Office of the High Representative and urged BiH political leaders to intensify efforts to meet the conditionality. The next formal PIC assessment will take place at its 29-30 June 2009 Steering Board meeting, which is likely to determine that there has been some progress but that further progress is needed, in particular on the allocation of state property, and linked decisions on defence property.