European Parliament member Tineke Strik told the Anadolu Agency that BiH Presidency member, Milorad Dodik, should not remain in office unless the country’s Republika Srpska entity withdraws its “unconstitutional laws and decisions” which threaten stability in BiH.
Strik met earlier with BiH Presidency member, Sefik Dzaferovic, to discuss the situation in the country.
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“We share the concerns about the current situation in the country,” she said.
“All eyes are now on Ukraine facing the Russian invasion, but we must pay even more attention to the current risks in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Strik warned.
She argued that divided opinions regarding the Russian aggression on Ukraine can now be seen in BiH, with Dodik largely siding with Russia, “which is a direct threat to peace and stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and in fact, in the Western Balkans region as a whole.”
Strik stressed that the EU must send a clear message to Dodik, as well as the Speaker of the BiH House of Peoples, Dragan Covic and others in BiH that “everything should be done to keep Bosnia and Herzegovina on the right path.”
Decisions on the future of BiH must be made within the country’s institutions and must focus on economic issues and overall social development, she said.
“As we can see, this is very endangered by the decisions of the Assembly of the Republika Srpska entity,” she said, referring to the initiatives to unilaterally transfer various state-level competencies to the entity level.
“I think we must be completely clear with Mr Dodik, that such actions are unacceptable because they directly threaten the integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” she said.
If those decisions are not withdrawn “we cannot accept that Dodik will remain serving his post,” she said.
She also spoke about security in BiH and welcomed EUFOR’s deployment of additional troops to the country, adding, “our priority is the security of the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina against any threat, whether from outside or from the leaders of the Republika Srpska.”
She stressed that the functionality of the state is also very important.
“Many decisions have been blocked and we call on the leaders to unblock the decision-making processes,” she said.
“I know that the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina want to live together, in peace and stability,” Strik concluded.
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