US diplomat Clint Williamson, head of an international arbitral tribunal for the status of Brcko District, has said that Bosnia and Herzegovina's two entities and all government structures must respect Brcko's status and independence, and that the threats of war must stop.

He visited BiH due to the political crisis in the country caused by announcements by the authorities of the Serb entity that they will contest key state institutions such as the armed forces and judiciary.

“I must say that recent events in the country have been very troubling and it is this current situation that prompted my present visit. While in Bosnia-Herzegovina, I have reminded all of my interlocutors of my ongoing responsibility to assess compliance of all parties with the terms of the Final Award, and the obligation of the Arbitral Tribunal to act accordingly should a question of serious non-compliance arise,” Williamson said, according to Sunday's press release from the Office of the High Representative to BiH.

The status of Brcko was not settled with the 1995 Dayton peace agreement, which ended the war in BiH, because the signatories could not agree on it. An international arbitral tribunal was therefore established as well as the office of international supervisor for Brcko with unlimited powers.

Since then both the heads of the tribunal and the supervisors have been US diplomats. Under the final arbitral award from 1999 and a decision of the High Representative from 2000, the wider Brcko area was defined as a district, a local government unit under BiH’ sovereignty over which the country's two entities have no powers.

The authorities of the Serb entity of Republika Srpska are now trying to bring into question the implementation of many BiH laws in Brcko, which divides the entity in two and therefore has strategic significance, a fact that has gained weight in the wake of recent discussions on threats to BiH's territorial integrity.

The northwestern part of the territory, now part of Republika Srpska, would remain without a connection to the rest of the entity and the Serbian border if Brcko authorities opted for strict control of traffic through the district. The arbitral tribunal is authorised to adopt a new decision on the status of Brcko, annexing it to one of the two entities, for example.

Williamson said it was necessary to keep Brcko a successful example of post-war reconciliation and coexistence, and that Brcko residents should not fear another armed conflict.

He called on Brcko authorities to continue to adopt and implement measures that would ensure full implementation of the arbitral tribunal's final award.