The United Nations (UN) Security Council is holding a session in New York to discuss the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina(BiH), and at the beginning of the session, the mandate of the EUFOR Althea mission was extended.
This was followed by statements from representatives of member states.
The representative of the United States (U.S.) in the Security Council said that the U.S. is committed to preserving peace in the Western Balkans and welcomed the extension of the EUFOR mission.
“We remain committed to Dayton and to a stable, peaceful BiH. The situation in BiH must deescalate; we call on all sides to refrain from actions that could cause instability. In the past several months, the U.S. has been working discreetly and deliberately to ensure de-escalation. We welcome the steps taken by the Republika Srpska (RS) Assembly, which has taken actions that ensured greater stability. In response to this, we removed the sanctions. These sanctions, like others, were never meant to be permanent or lasting. They were a response to actions that contributed to the crisis. The U.S. no longer engages in extensive international interventions; it is time for local actions by actors representing the three constituent peoples in BiH. We call on them to use this opportunity for greater stability,” said the U.S. representative.
