"The Council expressed concern at recent cases of inflammatory rhetoric used during the election campaign. In this context, the Council reaffirmed its unequivocal commitment to the Dayton-Paris Peace Agreement and the territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina," read conclusions adopted by the Union's foreign ministers at a meeting in Brussels.
Bosnia's elections have been scheduled for October 1 and the EU expects them to be conducted "in accordance with international standards".
In light of the envisaged closure of the Office of the High Representative, the EU said the elections "will be particularly significant as the leaders chosen will have to take greater responsibility for the realisation of BiH's European perspective".
The EU ministers expressed particular concern at the delay of several key reforms, notably police restructuring.
The Council included Serbia in its conclusions on the Western Balkans, although this had not been announced. The ministers reiterated that negotiations on a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) could be resumed once Serbia achieved full cooperation with the Hague war crimes tribunal.
The Council urged the Serbian authorities to step up the implementation of the Action Plan for cooperation with the UN court so as to meet that criterion.
The Council welcomed the European Commission's announcement that it would "re-launch shortly" the SAA negotiations with Montenegro, saying that "the pace and conclusion of these negotiations will depend on Montenegro's progress in relevant reforms".
The conclusions on Montenegro also welcomed the "peaceful and orderly" conduct of parliamentary elections last weekend.