The Republika Srpska cannot be an independent state, London “condemns the threats” of secession of the Republika Srpska and continues to support the Dayton Agreement, said Lord Stuart Peach, the British Prime Minister’s special envoy for the Western Balkans during his visit to Croatia.
The former commander of the British Air Force and former president of the NATO Military Committee in Croatia met with, among others, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, Minister of Foreign Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman and leader of the Independent Democratic Party of Serbia Milorad Pupovec.
In an interview with Hina two years ago, Peach expressed great concern about the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Today, after the arrival of a new government and certain developments in the processes within our country, the British envoy is “still concerned”, especially about the security situation threatened by threats of secession from Republika Srpska.
London condemns these threats and says that Republika Srpska is a legitimate entity within BiH, but it cannot be an “independent state” as its president Milorad Dodik wants to make it, Peach said.
“A bright future for Bosnia and Herzegovina is in everyone’s interest, for all people in that country, regardless of ethnic group,” said Peach in an interview for Hina.
Britain is calling on Serbia to impose sanctions against Russia, as it is the last country in the Western Balkans that has not done so, and to investigate possible irregularities in the elections held in December in order to preserve the integrity of the electoral process, says Peach.
In doing so, Belgrade should cooperate with the Organization for European Security and Cooperation, which in its preliminary report made specific remarks on the election process.
Peach expressed absolute support for the normalization of relations between Serbia and Kosovo and condemned the organization of an armed conflict near the town of Banjska in the north of Kosovo, in which Serbian citizens attacked the Kosovo police.
The Briton called it a “serious incident” and emphasized that the Kosovo authorities are fully cooperating in the investigation, “which he also emphasized during the talks in Belgrade.”
He added that the amount of weapons found could be destabilizing for Kosovo, which is why he praised the professional and coordinated actions of the Kosovo police.
Normalization between Belgrade and Pristina will benefit all citizens of both countries, but also the wider region, including Croatia, and the future of Kosovo is that of a “multi-ethnic republic”, said Peach.
Regarding Montenegro and its new government, which has the support of pro-Russian and pro-Serbian parties, Peach said that it has shown positive steps in the reform of the rule of law and the appointment of judges, which has been recognized by both Britain and the EU.
The Montenegrin government should be encouraged to maintain or accelerate that trajectory, said Peach, emphasizing the importance of Montenegro as a member of NATO.
Peach emphasized that today, due to the changed geopolitical circumstances and new conflicts, it is “more important than before” not to add new risks to the area of the Western Balkans and not to allow those who want to destabilize the area, such as Russia, to succeed.
In today’s world, “we have to be more vigilant than ever”, said the Briton, who sees the danger to stability in fake news and conspiracy theories, because of which residents start to create attitudes “that are not backed by facts”.
Peach declared the Russian aggression against Ukraine an attack on European values, which is why it is crucial that Europe stands united in their defense.
