The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elmedin Konaković, announced a move that could further cool BiH’s diplomatic relations with Serbia. After a series of reactions from Serbian officials regarding the death of the legally convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić, Konaković announced that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina will withdraw staff from the Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Belgrade.
As he explained, BiH Ambassador to Serbia Aleksandar Vranješ cannot be withdrawn by the decision of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, because the appointment and dismissal of ambassadors and consuls falls under the jurisdiction of the Presidency of BiH. For this reason, according to Konaković’s announcement, the ambassador would remain in Belgrade, while the rest of the staff would be withdrawn.
Konaković said that after the withdrawal of the staff, part of the work currently performed by the Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Belgrade would be transferred to the diplomatic and consular missions of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Croatia and Montenegro.
In this way, as he stated, communication between the two countries would be reduced to the minimum possible within the scope of the powers that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BiH has.
The decision followed the events in Serbia that followed the death of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić, and especially after his funeral in Belgrade, which was attended by numerous officials and public figures.
