Column by the Head of the EU Delegation/EU Special Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Luigi Soreca
Few understand the enormous suffering of Ukrainians better than people in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Across Ukraine, people continue to live with the constant threat of drones and rockets, the anguish of losing loved ones, the terror of putting children to bed and worrying about whether the whole family will wake up safely.
For the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina, this war is not a distant conflict – it is a painful reminder of their own past. As well as a shared empathy, people in Bosnia and Herzegovina deeply understand that lasting peace and security can only come through respect for international law, justice for the victims of atrocities and stable and functional domestic institutions. 30 years on, this process is not complete in Bosnia and Herzegovina. But for this process to even start in Ukraine, there first needs to be a just peace that guarantees lasting security.
Russia’s war of aggression has impacted Ukraine most of all, but has also had enormous consequences for all Europeans, including those in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Russia’s war of aggression has dramatically increased insecurity on our continent. Through hybrid war tactics, including the spread of disinformation, Russia has tried to stoke divisions across Europe, including in Bosnia and Herzegovina and throughout the region. Russia’s actions have emboldened anti-democratic movements to challenge international and domestic frameworks grounded in the rule of law that have kept us secure. Narratives that we thought were consigned to the past are being resurrected.
Prices, particularly for energy and basic goods, have skyrocketed, particularly affecting the most vulnerable. By providing 100 million BAM in financial assistance to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s most vulnerable citizens through the Energy Support Package, as well as an extra 40 million BAM in the same package for energy transition, the EU has tried to mitigate some of the effects of Russia’s actions. We will continue to stand by our partners.
Just as the war has had profound consequences, so will the peace. Russia has proven time and time again that it will not hesitate to use military force to achieve what it wants, breaking international law, including the UN Charter, while being a permanent member of the UN Security Council. No-one wants peace more than the Ukrainians, but any peace deal must be sustainable. A bad deal will only lead to more war.
Sovereignty and territorial integrity are the cornerstone of the international order. And we will defend the international order with all the tools we have available in Ukraine, just as in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where we remain committed to the country’s future in the EU as a single, united and sovereign state, as well as maintaining a safe and secure environment through the presence of EUFOR.
Today, we mark the sombre third anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Together with the Ambassadors of EU member states, as well as our partners and international organisations, I welcomed Yaroslav Simonov, the Ukrainian chargé d’affaires in Bosnia and Herzegovina at the premises of the EU Delegation/Office of the EU Special Representative to express the EU’s ongoing and full solidarity with Ukraine and our support for an inclusive, just and comprehensive peace in Ukraine.
The European Union was founded after the horrors of the Second World War, to ensure lasting peace in Europe. We will remain loyal to these values – defending sovereignty and territorial integrity, strengthening democratic institutions and human rights protections, and upholding peace, security, and justice – in Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and across our continent. Europe must remain a place where freedom prevails over oppression, dialogue over conflict, and law over force.
