According to Austrian media, Bosnia’s international administrator, High Representative Valentin Inzko, hinted that he may leave the post soon and former German Minister of Food and Agriculture, Christian Schmidt, could be his successor.
The High Representative is the international official tasked with overseeing the civilian implementation of the 1995 Dayton Peace Agreement which ended the Bosnian war and contains the country’s Constitution.
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Local media in BiH reported on Thursday that Germany’s Ambassador in the country, Magret Uebber, met with the Croat member of Bosnia’s tripartite Presidency, Zeljko Komsic, to discuss Inzko’s successor.
However, neither Komsic’s office, nor the German ambassador confirmed this information.
The Office of the High Representative (OHR), told N1 that Inzko “will refrain from commenting on any names in terms of his potential successor.”
“The High Representative's focus will continue to be on the implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement. The goal is for Bosnia and Herzegovina to be a stable and functional country, irreversibly on the Euro-Atlantic path it chose. The High Representative welcomes any steps that would lead to the strengthening of the OHR and the commitment of the international community to achieve this goal,” the OHR said.
However, Inzko reportedly told APA (Austria Presse Agentur) that Germany proposed Schmidt for the post.
He said that he would welcome the change after twelve years of serving as High Representative in Bosnia.
According to Germany’s ‘Der Standard’, Inzko confirmed that Germany has expressed interest in the office of High Representative.
The Austrian diplomat pointed out that there is an urgent need to change the political approach of the international community in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
