BiH Presidency Member Željko Komšić, in his review of the 61st Munich Security Conference, said that it was completely different from previous ones – to put it mildly.
“And certainly shocking, but, hopefully, sobering for a large number of European leaders. If, however, I am wrong and it turns out that there was no political sobering up of the European political, business and every other establishment, the entire European continent will find itself in a big problem during Trump’s second term,” said Komšić.
He recalled that the central event of this year’s conference was the speech of US Vice President JD Vance.
“It was a bit sad, to say the least, to listen to some of the European leaders who spoke before Vance, with the exception of German President Steinmeier, who was critical of the new US administration and who did not even stay to listen to Vance’s speech. All the speakers before Vance, with the exception of the aforementioned Steinmeier, came out pleadingly, almost panickingly begging for the continuation of American policy towards the EU, the policy they knew before Trump re-entered the Oval Office,” Komšić notes.
However, as Komšić said, JD Vance was ruthless towards Europe: “Complete silence and shock, with the occasional shout of discontent, reigned in the hall. Applause did not accompany Vance’s speech, only silence.”
“When you look at Vance’s speech and the atmosphere in the hall full of European leaders, only then does it become clear to you how much misunderstanding and how big a gap has emerged between the European political establishment and the new administration in Washington. It seems to me that this gap is unbridgeable,” Komšić emphasized.
Komšić warned that difficult times are certainly coming for Europe: “Since World War II, the US has certainly never been stronger than it is now with Trump as president. But Washington’s policy has never been exposed so brutally. Now everything is seen and known, unlike in some previous times. Everything that the current US president says, he actually means and will do everything to implement it.”
We must ask ourselves where we are in all of this and how to position ourselves in the future, Komšić emphasized.
“Dodik and Dodik’s supporters openly rejoice and expect all the benefits from the new administration, Čović the same, conditionally speaking the ‘Sarajevo’ political scene is quarreled, divided and hardly paying attention to all of this. I think the first thing we need to do is, in fact, wake up from the sweet dreams in which someone else defends us and cares for us. In such a world that is still being born, no one will do that. It is high time to turn to ourselves and seek strength within ourselves. There is no more Murphy, no more O’Brien, the ‘expert’ for the Balkans and Bosnia and Herzegovina, Schmidt has taken refuge in the deepest hole, he does not appear, and all he thinks about are the results of the new elections in Germany and hopes that, by some miracle, he could survive politically, Europe is trying to pull itself together and all we can hope for is that it succeeds”, said Komšić.
Finally, Komšić noted that he does not like to talk about the war: “In the end, few people want to listen to it anymore. But, in addition to many horrible things, I learned one useful thing in the war, very applicable in today’s world – when you are strong, then you are a partner in conversation, then you are a subject, and when you are weak, no one needs you, then you are an object! Let’s do something for ourselves!”.
Photo: archive
