While we train soldiers with the aggressor, we await an apology: A strategy that brings only humiliation!

By: Amina Čorbo-Zećo

For politicians in Bosnia and Herzegovina to react to obvious security and political threats, something spectacular seems to have to happen, something that will produce enough media pressure and public outrage to force them into action. Such is the case with the latest decision by the Minister of Defense Zukan Helez to suspend military cooperation with the Ministry of Defense of Serbia, but only after the Serbian Minister Bratislav Gašić insulted Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the leadership of the smaller entity paraded through the barracks of the Armed Forces of BiH, violating all principles of civilian and military subordination.

Helez decided to suspend bilateral military cooperation, except for the training of cadets who are already attending the Military Academy in Serbia, and that is "until an apology is issued". However, such an apology, even if it happens, essentially changes nothing.

Because what does a diplomatic "we are sorry" mean, if at the same time, for years, systematically, members of the Armed Forces of BiH are being trained in a country that has been designated by international courts as responsible for failing to prevent the genocide in Srebrenica.

The media and analysts have been pointing to this problem for years, including the author himself. Countless articles have been written on this topic, but nothing has resulted in any serious reaction. While mostly Bosniak and Croat cadres are trained in Croatia, in Serbia, almost exclusively members of the Serb nationality from BiH are trained. In a multi-ethnic army, such an educational and ideological division represents a security risk, and not a theoretical one, but a real one.

It is even more frightening that the Ministry of Defense has been repeating for years that it "cannot influence candidate applications", instead of having a clear strategy that cadres of the Armed Forces of BiH should not be trained in countries that had a direct military and political role in the aggression against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Serbia and Croatia are not ordinary neighboring countries; they are countries whose military and political leaders have been finally convicted by international courts for war crimes in BiH.

Therefore, the logical question is why a diplomatic incident had to happen, or why Dodik, Stevandić, and Višković had to parade in the barracks, for the Ministry of Defense to finally start reconsidering the obviously wrong practice. Why does the reaction never come on time, but always too late when the damage has already been done.

Thus, for example, it should be reminded that the BiH Ambassador to Germany, Damir Arnaut, warned last year about another strategic mistake, the subservience of BiH diplomacy towards Hungary. And here, too, the reaction was absent, even though Hungary unhesitatingly voted against the Resolution on the Genocide in Srebrenica, which the BiH authorities publicly supported. Hungary openly supports Dodik. They sent their special forces to extract Dodik from Banja Luka, in case of arrest!?

At the same time, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Elmedin Konaković boasted about rotations on his way to Budapest and allowed the Hungarian MFA to "train" our diplomats.

Is it really necessary for someone to humiliate us, to turn their back on us, to vote against us, or to march militarily through our system, to force us into a reflexive and belated awakening.

Cadres are not sent for diplomatic or military training to countries that were accomplices in the aggression. Strategic partnerships are not made with regimes that deny genocide. Warnings are not ignored until the fire breaks out.

If we didn't know before, we know now. The question remains whether we will need to be hit again to move forward.