The Chairperson of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Željka Cvijanović, stressed that on the 30th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Agreement, we need to renew what the agreement really means – consent, constitutionality and cooperation among equals, and return to the basics so that the next thirty years are better than the previous thirty.
The address of the Chairman of the Presidency of BiH at the gathering in Ohio marking the 30th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Agreement is reproduced in full:
“It is with deep respect and a sense of responsibility that I address you here in Dayton, the city where our history was changed.
Thirty years ago, the Dayton Peace Agreement ended a devastating war and established a constitutional framework for BiH that reflected the reality of our society. It gave each of the three constituent peoples and two entities the right to govern themselves independently within one state.
Dayton did not erase our differences – it provided organization. It did not impose unity – it provided structure.
However, today that balance is slowly collapsing – not through a democratic mandate, but through the actions of unelected international actors who do not perceive Dayton as a binding agreement, but as a living document that needs to be stretched, interpreted and rewritten – without the consent of domestic actors.
It is true that Bosnia and Herzegovina has been treated as a radical state-building project for the past 30 years. That The experimental approach has led the country from one crisis to another. Almost all foreign interventions have been carried out without negotiations, without parliamentary procedure and without constitutional legitimacy.
It is justified and appropriate to reiterate right here, in Dayton itself, that the Dayton Agreement never gave the right to any unelected foreign bureaucrat with the title of High Representative to impose or change our laws, to suspend entity constitutions, to instrumentalize the legal system to silence and remove our democratically elected leaders, such as the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, or to punish our political parties.
All of the above was done by Christian Schmidt, as were many of his predecessors over the past three decades.
Most worrying is the resort to abuse of the judiciary, where legitimate political dissent is met with criminal charges, indictments and threats of arrest.
I have listened carefully to what US President Donald Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and just two days ago, US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau.
It is quite clear that the state-building model that has been promoted in Bosnia and Herzegovina for three decades is at odds with the policies of the new administration of President Trump.
I believe that his administration will help us save democracy in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where its future will not be written by decrees and foreign dictates, but by law and our constitution.
I come from Republika Srpska and I want to make it clear: we are not undermining the Dayton Agreement – we are defending it. But we do not want those who do not participate in our elections, do not speak our language and who do not bear the consequences for their imposed decisions to dictate to us how we should work and govern.
One example of our commitment is that November 21, the day the Dayton Agreement was signed, is a national holiday in Republika Srpska, while in the other entity it is an ordinary working day.
We want to renew Dayton – to return to the agreement as it was signed, and not as it is imagined today. That is why Republika Srpska calls for a return to basics. We are ready to engage in a structured dialogue with all parties. If the agreement is to evolve, then it must evolve lawfully – through amendments and with the consent of all parties.
We also believe in a strategic partnership with the United States of America, especially when it comes to investments in the energy sector, as well as the exploitation of critical minerals, on the basis of transparency and constitutionality.
Finally, I would like to emphasize: peace was possible in 1995 because all parties were respected and heard. Peace in 2025 requires the same approach,” concluded the Chairperson of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Željka Cvijanović.
