The head of the Mission of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Zlatko Lagumdžija, addressed the session of the United Nations Security Council, accusing Russia of bias.
“If anyone raises tensions, it is you. In the Dayton Agreement, there is no common state of BiH, but the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. There is an entity Republika Srpska. The fact that you released the letter of only one member of the Presidency of BiH speaks of your bias,” said Lagumdžija, addressing to his Russian colleague.
Referring to that letter, Lagumdžija reminded her that states address the UN, not territorial units.
“Only Bosnia and Herzegovina has international legal sovereignty. The entities are not in charge of foreign policy. The authorities of Republika Srpska are undermining the constitutional order, using incendiary rhetoric, raising tensions. The ruling coalition has begun to take steps towards a potential future secession, this can be seen in the joint statement of the authorities in the RS. The High Representative stated that the adoption of the Election Law of the RS is an attack on the constitutional order. The Steering Committee for Peace Implementation clearly shows that the appointment of the High Representative is in accordance with the UN resolutions,” Lagumdžija emphasized.
He said that the authorities of Republika Srpska are using the methods of war criminals to disrupt the peace. He believes that the purpose of the Security Council meeting at the initiative of Russia is actually pressure to withdraw the Resolution on the genocide in Srebrenica.
“Genocide denial is the last stage of genocide. That is not the society we want to leave to children. In and around Srebrenica, celebrating war criminals, dehumanizing the survivors, will prevent them from justice and reconciliation. The culture of remembering the victims of genocide must be such that the genocide never happens again. Denial of genocide stands in the way of the future of BiH and increases the possibilities for conflicts, and if it is not put to an end, it will create a path for new genocides,” warned Lagumdžija.
Serbian Ambassador Marko Đurić said that his country supports the territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but he questioned the proposed resolution on the genocide in Srebrenica.
“I want to pay my respects to all the victims in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but after that I ask all those who proposed the uncoordinated draft to understand that it was proposed in violation of the Dayton Agreement. That is why I ask that this draft be withdrawn. Even in the 1990s, irresponsible leaders before the beginning war began to heal the wounds from the Second World War,” said Đurić.
He states that the Resolution did not have the consensus of the BiH Presidency and that the Republika Srpska entity was not consulted about it.
“Justice for all victims is reconciliation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Elmedin Konaković revealed his true intention, which is to plan to initiate proceedings against Serbia. A huge number of people are leaving both entities, and how many people will remain if old wounds are opened. We do not want our region to be torn apart by ethnic tensions. Let’s prepare a new resolution that will have agreement in BiH and the region. Let’s immediately decide to withdraw the resolution, so that there is no hierarchy of victims and revenge,” said Đurić.
