In the current Election Law negotiations, a parallel is often drawn between the current situation and the 1994 Washington Agreement. It is often pointed out that the end of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) began with the end of the conflict between the Army of the Republic of BiH (RBiH) and the Croatian Defence Council (HVO).
In this context, it is useful to recall some of the basic circumstances in which the Washington Agreement was concluded, as the basis of today’s Federation of BiH (FBiH).
The answer to the question about the circumstances of signing this agreement is given by the report submitted by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the United States (U.S.) on November 22nd, 1994, which was disclosed in 2013, as well as numerous other confidential documents of the U.S. authorities from 1992 until 1995.
“Bosnian leaders believe Tudjman is a problem, while Bosnian Croats, like those in Croatia, believe Izetbegovic’s primary goal is to retain personal power and ensure Muslim dominance. The prospects for rapid and extensive development of the Federation are not great, but the absence of an appropriate alternative, as well as international pressure, is likely to preserve the Federation, if not as a complete success, then at least as long as the Bosnian war lasts, “ CIA analysts conclude.
“All sources consistently indicate that Bosnian Muslims see the Federation as a means to start a more effective war against the Serb side. The ceasefire allowed weapons to flow through Croatia and Bosnian Croat-controlled territory, then relieved troops fighting on the front and opened ways for humanitarian aid to arrive, ” it was said.
It further states that the Bosnian side signed the Washington agreement because it sees the Federation as a means to avoid the partition that was an integral part of the earlier Vance-Owen plan. It was also said that the RBiH government is concerned that it will be equal to the Croatian side and that it will have to make decisions through consensus with Croats, whose number isthree times smaller.
It was then mentioned that the Bosnian leadership wants to maintain the supremacy it has in the institutions of the RBiH and is very critical when it comes to maintaining the self-proclamation of the Croatian Republic of Herceg-Bosna.
“Croatian President Tudjman continues to play the biggest role when it comes to the Federation. He pushed the process forward this spring to prevent the imposition of United Nations (UN)sanctions over Croatia’s military assistance to Bosnian Croats,” it was said and they mentioned that Tudjman put all his roles in the fight against Serb forces in Krajina, for which he needed international support.
This CIA report confirms that a key role in the establishment of the Federation was played by Zagreb’s support and Tudjman’s pressure on the HDZ BiH to accept an alliance with Sarajevo and a joint fight against the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS). Mediation also played an indispensable role, above all by the U.S.
Having in mind that, according to CIA analysts, HDZ BiH accepted the Washington Agreement only under Tudjman’s pressure and after the defeat on the military field, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic has a key role in the current negotiations, because only he can put pressure on Dragan Covic to accept a compromise and give up his alliance with the RS.
E.Dz.
Source: Klix.ba
