There is a danger that unfounded speculation on redrawing borders in the Western Balkans along ethnic lines will cause instability in this region, as the spokesman of the State Department of the United States (U.S.), Ned Price, said in a statement.
As he stated, the stable and prosperous future of the Western Balkans must be based on good governance, the rule of law, multiethnic democracy, and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and also the fact that Washington supports the region’s countries on the path to European integration and membership in key European and Euro-Atlantic institutions.
“We are working with the Western Balkan countries and our European partners to improve public administration, the rule of law, and reform in the anti-corruption fight, as well as to promote independent media and vigorous civil societies, which will strengthen the region’s European perspective and advance the long-term goal of a full, free, and peaceful Europe,” it was stated in the announcement.
Price also referred to the relations between Serbia and Kosovo and told that the U.S. is ready to support the work on a comprehensive, binding agreement on normalization, based on mutual recognition, which lays the foundations for long-term cooperation and prosperity.
Furthermore, Price said the U.S. is working with the international community to support Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) in implementing reforms, including the Election Law, that will allow it to develop and secure candidate status for European Union (EU).
“The Office of the High Representative (OHR), which was established 25 years ago under the Dayton Peace Agreement, contributes significantly to peace and stability in BiH. We continue to support the important role of the OHR in the realization of the 5+2 program, with a renewed focus on the anti-corruption fight as key to the good establishment of rule of law, ” as was concluded in the statement.
The emergence of alleged “non-papers” has further shaken political developments in the Western Balkans, while the allegations of border redrawing have brought war rhetoric once again in the public discourse, Klix
E.Dz.
