Encourage dialogue instead of conflict, newly appointed Security Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina Selmo Cikotic said in his first interview with N1 after assuming office, speaking of his plans as a state minister.

“We all must take a part of the burden for a better future. As someone who was educated in defence system, who had academic education in the security sector, I couldn't reject the offer of my party leader,” Cikotic said, explaining the reasons why he accepted the nomination.

He stressed he was absolutely ready for hard work.

Asked how he plans to deal with the migrant crisis, the new minister said this was a “global issue with political, security, demographical and intelligence dimensions.”

“We're not their starting nor final destination, we're just transitional spot,” he said, adding that a comprehensive approach to this matter already exists.

The migrant issue is a complex issue concerning the safety of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and has to be treated as such, said the minister.

Asked if this problem should be coordinated with the neighbouring countries, Cikotic said this has to be solved through mechanisms of cooperation.

“If we could hypothetically close the borders with Serbia and Montenegro, then there would be no influx of migrants,” he said, adding it was necessary to review real options in distributing that burden.

Deploying the army to protect the borders would be “a delicate and hardly implementable idea,” according to him, not only in case of Bosnia and Herzegovina but in case of any other country.

“Solutions should be sought for in cooperation of law enforcement agencies, police and security agencies,” he added.

Speaking of his predecessor, Fahrudin Radoncic, the new security minister said he was very active, agile, and was taking all the actions from the scope of his competencies.