In coordination with Moscow and Belgrade, the Bosnian entity Republika Srpska is threatening peace

Denis Bećirović, a member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, warns that the authorities of Republika Srpska, one of the entities of the country that is on the doorstep of the EU, are threatening the return of armed violence. For this statesman, the stability of Europe is at stake here.

In parallel with the beginning of the Russian aggression against Ukraine, the authorities of one of the Bosnian and Herzegovinian entities, Republika Srpska (RS), have intensified destructive activities that seriously threaten the peace and stability of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In direct coordination with Moscow and Belgrade, the RS authorities are attacking the fundamental provisions of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, signed at the Élysée Palace thirty years ago.

Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Western Balkans region are now facing real threats of a return to armed violence. The authorities of the RS entity are taking dangerous steps and openly endangering the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Recently, the public learned shocking information that the leaders of the RS entity have illegally formed a working group to destroy the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Dayton-Paris Peace Agreement. In addition, the RS entity Assembly has adopted a series of anti-Dayton laws and decisions. These activities could open the way to armed conflict and new suffering. This is why the West needs to react decisively, concretely and urgently.

Nationalist policies of the leaders of Republika Srpska

Some of the largest Western countries have already imposed sanctions on the leaders of RS, assessing that the dangerous nationalist policies of the leaders of that entity threaten domestic and regional peace. Members of the European Parliament have also adopted several resolutions, calling on EU member states to take identical measures.

In this context, it is very important that France condemns the destruction of the Dayton-Paris Peace Agreement with concrete actions. As one of the witness states of the international agreement, France has an international obligation to protect it.

After the reconstruction of the war-torn country, with the support of the international community, some of the most important reforms were implemented in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We have unified the defence system, the judiciary, the tax system and numerous other institutions.

Today, Bosnia and Herzegovina stands at the doorstep of the EU and NATO and is actively working to become their full member. These are our strategic foreign policy goals, which were unanimously defined by the state authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Unfortunately, pro-Russian forces in the RS entity are jeopardizing the achieved results and are trying to block the Euro-Atlantic and European path of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The highest courts of the United Nations have ruled with finality that genocide was committed against Bosniaks in Srebrenica in 1995 in the “United Nations Safe Area”. The rulings established that the genocide was committed by the army and police of Republika Srpska, and that the Republic of Serbia violated the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Also, crimes against humanity and other war crimes were committed throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina. Unfortunately, followers of the same ideology and politics responsible for the genocide are once again threatening Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Open attack on independence

The leadership of the Republic of Serbia is aggressively interfering in the internal affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as some other countries in the region. One of the proofs of my claim is the Declaration adopted by the so-called All-Serbian Assembly in Belgrade, on June 8, 2024. This text is absolutely contrary to the practice in a democratic world that respects international law. It is a direct attack on the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The essential goal of the leadership of Serbia is the destruction of the internationally recognized state of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the annexation of the RS entity into Serbia. The project of a Greater Serbia is not only a threat to Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also to the stability of Europe as a whole. It is crucial that all states respect the principle of the inviolability of state borders.

The Republic of France is a proven friend of multi-ethnic Bosnia and Herzegovina. As a member of the Presidency of BiH, I thank France for everything it has done and is doing for the peace and security of all citizens of my country.

The West has the potential and mechanisms to stop the spread of conflict from Ukraine to the Western Balkans. That is why it is important that the West does not repeat the mistakes of the 1990s, when it reacted only after the genocide against Bosniaks was committed in the heart of Europe.

NATO established peace in 1995 and has an international mandate to protect the Dayton-Paris Peace Agreement. According to this agreement, it is responsible for preserving the peace, independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina.