Bećirović: Failure to adopt the British resolution is dangerous for BiH, it must urgently become a NATO member

Director of the International Institute for Middle Eastern and Balkan Studies (IFIMES) Ljubljana, M.Sc. Zijad Bećirović analyzed the failure to adopt the Srebrenica Resolution in the UN Security Council, writes the BiH news agency Patria.

Bećirović believes that Serbia was used by Russia, not the other way around.

- Serbia least needed the demonstration of Russian strength in the Balkans. The citizens of Serbia will pay the bill, and with this act, Milorad Dodik has most likely initiated the political dismantling of Republika Srpska (RS). The proposal of the British resolution, which did not mention countries or peoples except those who recognized themselves in the resolution, served Russia to turn Serbia into a Russian province. With Tomislav Nikolić and Dodik, there are real chances for a political crisis, similar to the one at the end of the nineties of the last century, because both represent the reincarnation of Slobodan Milošević and Radovan Karadžić.

In such an atmosphere, there is a real danger for Bosnia and Herzegovina and for its most numerous people. By failing to adopt the British resolution, the UN Security Council showed that a scenario for BiH is possible, similar to the scenario for the former SFRY at the time, meaning that attempts to repeat actions to dismember BiH, and thus possible new crimes, are possible. BiH must urgently become a member of NATO. Without NATO, the future of BiH is quite uncertain, and other countries in the region must also become NATO members through an accelerated procedure.

It is known that Serbia is an observer in the military alliance created by Russia with several former USSR states. Dragan Čović (HDZ) from BiH must understand that he cannot side with Russia, or Dodik in BiH. Čović, with such political actions, is directly undermining the Republic of Croatia as well. The British resolution only showed that BiH is in great danger, and the political leaderships that support membership in the EU and NATO, especially Bosniaks, must continue to work and insist on accelerated entry into NATO. The Russian veto is a "reward" for Serbia and Republika Srpska for refusing or obstructing accession to the NATO alliance. That "reward" can turn into a "punishment".

The failure to adopt the British resolution has prompted far greater reactions than would have occurred with the adoption of the resolution itself, and this is very important because those who believe they have achieved victory by exercising the Russian veto are essentially the biggest losers.

The resolution on Srebrenica adopted by the European Parliament (EP) and the US Congress, as well as the verdicts of the Hague Tribunal (ICTY) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which judicially proved the committed genocide in Srebrenica, are particularly important, and the Russian veto further discredits Russia in the international community because it does not respect the decisions of the ICTY and ICJ, of which it was a co-founder. Russia thus continues to violate international law, just as it recently illegally annexed Crimea contrary to international law.

The vote in the UN Security Council showed that this organization must undergo thorough reform. Germany, India, and Brazil are particularly insisting on this. The UN Security Council must also be reformed, and the issue of the (mis)use of the veto must be resolved. The UN was established in 1945, and it is a rigid and outdated organization that cannot meet the needs and modern challenges. Much has changed since 1945, and the reform must include and reflect the real state of the world community. For example, in the UN Security Council, we do not have representatives from Africa, Latin America, or representatives of Islamic countries.