The United States of America is very concerned about the anti-Dayton activities coming from Republika Srpska and that is why we did what we did, to announce the sanctions. They are not directed against the Serbs, nor against the citizens of Republika Srpska, but towards individuals who have individual responsibility that they must accept. This is what the US ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Michael Murphy, said in an interview with BHT1.
Speaking about the verdict of the court in Strasbourg in the Kovačević case and its implementation, Murphy said that it is quite clear and that the EU has already said that implementation should be carried out.
“There is an obligation to implement what the court said and ruled. As for this very verdict, we still haven’t seen the full verdict, so we couldn’t read it in detail. The third thing I want to say is that implementation depends on local political actors. We are committed to helping them do this, we have been engaged for years to achieve this. We see that there is no willingness of the political parties to engage, to negotiate, to reach a compromise. If the parties refuse to do this, it will be almost impossible to implement the judgment,”Murphy said.
He also pointed out that the future of BiH should be integration into the Euro-Atlantic institutions and that the citizens of this country want that.
“You can’t get to that road if you don’t work hard on that road. The price will be huge for the citizens of this country if the politicians don’t work responsibly and in the interests of the citizens,” he pointed out.
When it comes to Escobar’s visit, Murphy said he has done a lot of things in the country. During his visit to BiH, Escobar spoke with some of the political leaders, the Minister of Defense of BiH and representatives of civil society, he confirmed. He also arrived in Srebrenica to pay his respects to the victims of the genocide.
“The US is very concerned about the anti-Dayton activities coming from Republika Srpska, and that is why we announced sanctions. I want to be clear about this: these sanctions are directed against individuals for their actions. They are not directed against Serbs, they are not directed against citizens of the RS, they are targeted at individuals and their actions that are anti-Dayton, and they have individual responsibility. My government will continue to hold accountable people who act anti-Dayton,” noted Murphy.
Escobar did not meet with Dodik, he pointed out, and added that they do not meet with those who have been sanctioned. He said that they clearly told Dodik what they thought of his actions, but added that they continue to operate in the Republika Srpska.
“The US first analyzes the evidence very thoroughly, there are processes before we announce sanctions. If they continue to act anti-Dayton and corruptly, we will continue to act against it. It would be ideal to change the approach of the political leaders in this country regarding that behavior, but if doesn’t change, the U.S. will continue to hold individuals who behave this way responsible,” Murphy says.
As for the reactions to the sanctions, Murphy says it’s the production of whole conspiracy theories. He repeated that the USA has sanctioned individuals in FBiH as well.
“They present themselves as avatars of their people, which is not true. When I meet with various people, they are citizens of this country. Every morning, Serbs worry about whether they will have enough money to pay for what their family needs, just like everyone else . We do not act against those people. In the last 15 years, the individuals who have been sanctioned only enrich themselves personally and do not work for the interests of the citizens,” Murphy believes.
He also said that a democratic, stable, prosperous region is actually the American policy for the region for decades. He says it hasn’t changed and it won’t. He again emphasized solving economic problems and the fight against corruption, supporting the state institutions of BiH, saying that this is the policy of the US and that it will continue to be the support that the US has been giving to BiH for years.
“It is obvious that it is of crucial importance that there are good relations between the neighbors, the countries of the Western Balkans. There is often irresponsible rhetoric that we hear both here in BiH and in the region. There is no political immunity to it in the Balkans. The problem is: the countries of the region should have good neighborly relations with Bosnia and Herzegovina and to work together, but any rhetoric that implies interference in the internal affairs of another country is of no help,” the American ambassador said.
Speaking about Christian Schmidt’s latest decisions related to the Constitutional Court of BiH, Murphy reminded that Schmidt annulled two laws that were adopted in the RS, repeated that they were anti-Dayton laws, destabilizing and anti-constitutional, and that the USA condemned it very loudly.
“I am sure that the policy of the USA will not change or move in any direction. We, our international partners and the high representative will continue to work to defend the Dayton Peace Agreement against attacks like we have seen from the RS,” he said briefly.
Commenting on the changes to the Criminal Code in the RS and the criminalization of defamation, Murphy pointed out that it is rather ironic that Dodik talks about how his only purpose in life is to defend the RS when he spends so much time taking away their media freedom, speeches, gatherings, etc.
“The defamation law will have an impact on independent media and civil society, it is anti-democratic, autocratic, extremely irresponsible. We will do what we certainly do, which is to ensure fundamental freedoms and rights in the RS by supporting the citizens of this country, including the citizens of the RS in order to ensure freedom of media, speech and assembly so that it is not taken away from them by someone like Milorad Dodik,” he pointed out.
When it comes to the formation of authorities in FBiH, Murphy pointed out that the USA does not form governments and does not elect ministers. He repeated that they are against blockades and irresponsible actions. He also pointed out that he will continue to support those parties and leaders who want the country to move forward. He believes that progress cannot happen overnight, but that progress is possible.
Regarding the membership of Bosnia and Herzegovina in NATO, Murphy said that the USA was the biggest bilateral partner of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the effort to get closer to NATO. He says that relations with NATO should be deepened.
He also sent a message to the citizens, both personally and on behalf of the United States of America.
“I really enjoy it here, I love this country and its people. Every time I talk to the citizens, I enjoy the experience, I am inspired by their resilience and strength. I wish there was more of that in politics in BiH. I will continue to use every opportunity I have to I talk to people. We are the best and biggest friend of BiH and it has been like that for years and that will not change. But territorial integrity, sovereignty, multi-ethnic character, we think about that every day, and that means integrating the country into Euro-Atlantic institutions. That means investing time and diplomatic energy to help the country solve its problems. We are here to continue to be here and you can count on that, that is my message to BiH and its citizens,” said Murphy at the end of the interview with BHT1.
