Igor Kalabukhov, the Russian President to Bosnia and Herzegovina, said that the international law, logic and common sense won at the latest session of the UN Security Council, which unanimously adopted a resolution extending the mandate of the European Union military deployment in Bosnia but in absence of the international envoy, who oversees the peace process implementation in the country. He suggested to all actors in the country to engage in talks and sign a peace pact.

“I am thankful to the colleagues in the diplomatic corpse in Sarajevo and New York because the issues of the Office of the High Representative and the (EUFOR) Althea mission were separated,” said the ambassador referring to the Security Council session, where Russia insisted that the international envoy, officially the High Representative, Christian Schmidt does not take part in the session as Russia does not recognise his appointment.

Also, Kalabukhov said, his country “in principle advocates the closing down of the OHR as soon as possible.”

“After 26 years of the peace process in BiH, the time has come for the local actors to take over all responsibilities, even the one stemming from the Althea mission,” the ambassador told the public broadcaster in Bosnia's Republika Srpska entity RTRS.

Reiterating Russia's stance presented at the UN SC session, Kalabukhov said that the OHR has become a source of the destabilisation of the situation in BiH.

According to him, all the colleagues in the diplomatic corps would like to see the OHR closed but that there is no consent on the conditions for that.

“They all agree that the era of imposing in BiH is over,” he added.

The ambassador also noted that Bosnia needs the dialogue among its constituent peoples.

“Rhetoric in BiH must be calmed down. I believe there will be no war in BiH, because it is better to have five years of talks than wage a war for one day. It would be good if all actors in BiH signed a peace pact,” he said.