Today, after 18 years, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and Serbia are taking over full responsibility for regional stability and arms control, essential for building peace and stability in the Western Balkans, with senior politicians from the four countries signing a document on the 21st OSCE Ministerial Council in Basel.
Under the watchful eyes of OSCE Foreign Ministers, including Swiss Chair-in Office Didier Burkhalter, Deputy Chairperson of the Council of Ministers and Foreign Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina Zlatko Lagumdžija, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Montenegro Igor Lukšić, First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of CroatiaVesna Pusić, and First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of Serbia Ivica Dačić today signed the document, Amendments to the Agreement on Sub-Regional Arms Control.
Article IV, signed in Florence in June 1996, was designed to prevent a new arms race in the region and reduce the risk of a new escalation of the conflict, following years of war. It served as a framework for the countries to engage with each other in order to promote peace and stability in the region.
“The commitments from the Article IV of Dayton Peace Agreement became actions. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, and Serbia proved they can establish a stable military balance, at lowest level of armaments, reducing the risk of a new escalation of the conflict. Our Mission has been accomplished,” said Major General Michele Torres, Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for Article IV, Annex 1-B.
“The transfer of ownership is not a withdrawal of the International Community or an attempt to leave the countries alone in the process to come. Co-operation in all matters of arms control will remain with the OSCE, shifting from hands on assistance to a more supportive role,” said Torres.
This transfer process was one of the Swiss Chairmanship priorities on enhancing co-operation with and in the Western Balkans.
“The Dayton Article IV Agreement has been – and remains – highly relevant for stability in the Region and for the entire OSCE area. It serves as a model for other OSCE regions in order to enhance security and stability,” said the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister, Didier Burkhalter.
A total of 10,069 heavy armaments have been destroyed in the last nineteen years. More than 1,300 OSCE personnel in the field participated in more than 700 inspections, with the support of the 29 OSCE participating States.
“I commend the countries for fulfilling their obligations with responsibility, determination and professionalism. You proved today that the co-operation, trust and confidence among BiH, Montenegro, Croatia and Serbia are possible to build. No arms control regime could be implemented without your dedicated commitment,” concluded Burkhalter.
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