The current political crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is one of the topics of the session of the General Affairs Council of the European Union (EU) in Brussels.
Ahead of the meeting, officials from Germany, France, Luxembourg, and Croatia expressed concern over the situation in BiH. They called for a reduction in tensions and called on EU institutions to send a clear message to officials in BiH that the Dayton Agreement should not be underestimated.
BiH is in one of the biggest political and security crises since the end of the war, according to EU foreign ministers. The European institutions, as they said, must have a clear and concrete position and let the officials in BiH know that the Dayton Peace Agreement is a guarantor of peace and that it cannot be deviated from. Separatist tendencies, as they warned, threaten peace, but also the European path of BiH.
“In order for this European path not to be closed, it is necessary for responsible politicians, and above all, Dodik and Republika Srpska (RS), to know that we cannot progress through divisions and separatism. The exact opposite will happen,“ said Jean Asselborn, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Luxembourg.
Germany is calling for sanctions against Milorad Dodik. His efforts to weaken the state institutions of BiH are said to be steps that threaten the hard-won peace in the country and this region.
“The situation in BiH is worrying. Efforts to secede are unacceptable. In my opinion, this means that the current sanctions regime should also be applied against Mr. Dodik,” stated Annalena Baerbock, Germany’s foreign minister.
“This is really one of the topics that worries us a lot, the situation in BiH. It requires us to get a better view of the whole picture of the Western Balkans region,” said Clement Beaune, France’s European affairs minister.
E.Dz.
Source: BHRT