As part of his visit to the United States (USA), BiH Presidency Member Denis Bećirović met in Washington, in the US Senate building, with US Senator Roger Wicker (Republican Party), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, who is also Chairman of the Committee on Security and Cooperation in Europe.
The focus of the conversation was the current security situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Western Balkans region. Bećirović informed Senator Wicker in detail about the current security challenges in Bosnia and Herzegovina and pointed out the dangerous attempts by the leadership of the BiH entity Republika Srpska to destabilize the state and threaten peace and security in the entire region.
During the meeting, Bećirović particularly emphasized the importance of cooperation in the field of defense industry, which represents an excellent framework for broader defense and economic cooperation between the two countries. He emphasized the great potential for further modernization and increased exports, as well as joint development of capacities, in accordance with NATO standards. Interest was expressed in considering an appropriate form of representation of defense industry in the USA.
– The Armed Forces of BiH, as a key defense and security institution, are fully interoperable with the US military forces, which has been achieved through decades of investment, cooperation, and joint training and exercises. The Armed Forces of BiH remain a successful and reliable ally of the US. Bosnia and Herzegovina will continue to strengthen its long-standing partnership with the US, as it has done in numerous international missions, side by side with the US military, from Iraq and Afghanistan to other crisis areas – said Bećirović.
He emphasized that Bosnia and Herzegovina appreciates the comprehensive support of US institutions for the development and implementation of the BiH Reform Program within the Membership Action Plan (MAP), which is the key mechanism for the formal, legal, and political framework for cooperation between NATO and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Senator Wicker expressed full support for the independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and its path toward Euro-Atlantic integration. He condemned the anti-Dayton moves of the BiH leadership. entity of Republika Srpska, stating that its destructive actions pose a threat to the Dayton Peace Agreement, and peace and security in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Office of BiH Presidency Member Denis Bećirović announced.
