Will the Troika and Nikšić pay the price for opposing Čović's interests: Federation on the verge of a new parliamentary blockade

Written by: Rasim Belko @rasimbelko

Sporadic sparks but a substantive cooling of relations in the coalition partnership at the state level between the Sarajevo Troika and the HDZ BiH is slowly becoming a burden and a problem at the entity level of the Federation of BiH as well.

True, it is not only the misunderstandings and disagreements over Milorad Dodik that are the reason for the cooling of the coalition that was supposed to bring the Federation to the levels of socio-economic paradise, as they announced to us from this bloc coalition. The problem arose when the political fathers of the Sarajevo Troika and their coming to power billed the debtors for solving the American national interest - the Southern Interconnection project.

And that American, but also Bosnian national interest is in serious collision with the hegemonic-nationalist interests of official Zagreb and their branch office in the HDZ BiH, which wanted to turn the Southern Interconnection into a gas system for blackmailing Sarajevo and a better negotiating position.

The apology of Nermin Nikšić, the imposed federal prime minister and one of the leaders of the Troika, revived Dragan Čović's hope for reopening the issue of the Southern Interconnection and returning this project to the channels of interest to the HDZ and Croatia. However, shortly after the apology, it became clear that regardless of his willingness, Nikšić does not have the political capacity to continue condescendingly appeasing Dragan Čović.

And here we come to the key introduction to the federal parliamentary crisis. Namely, the 15th extraordinary session of the House of Representatives of the Parliament of the FBiH was convened to confirm the composition of the Commission for the professional assessment for issuing urban planning consent - the Law on the gas pipeline "Southern Interconnection Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Croatia".

Encouraged by Nikšić's apology, the HDZ, i.e., its deputies, launched a fierce attack at that session and opposed the confirmation of the commission, expecting to return the whole story to the beginning. However, it became clear already in the debate, and was confirmed by the vote, that the words of former US Ambassador Michael Murphy were still ringing in the ears of the deputies of the Sarajevo political scene, so with abundant help from the opposition, the Commission was confirmed, and the HDZ ended up under a cold shower.

However, the problem for the Troika and Nikšić is the fact that immediately after the conclusion of the 15th extraordinary session, the 20th regular session was supposed to be held. Supposed to, but it wasn't. Because they hadn't even properly started, the deputies were already at the exit doors after the HDZ BiH struck back and rejected the agenda of the regular session.

That day, the parliamentary life of the Federation came to a halt, because since April 24, the possibilities of holding sessions have not even been mentioned. True, committees are meeting in the meantime, but it is clear that both houses of the Parliament of the FBiH will wait for the time of reconciliation between the Troika and the HDZ.

The fact that the leaders of the Sarajevo Troika are increasingly confronting Čović at the state level will certainly not help in resolving the cooled relations at the level of the FBiH.

And this brings back memories of the not-so-distant parliamentary blockade of the Federation of BiH, which was also carried out by Dragan Čović's HDZ, and the price and burden of the blockade were paid by the SDA and Fadil Novalić, because the international creators of the Troika found identical guilt of the HDZ and the SDA in that blockade.

Therefore, although it is not at fault because the HDZ, due to its UZP policy, is provoking a new long-term crisis, the Troika should prepare to bear the consequences, because international mediators do not weigh fairly, but according to interest. The fact that the crisis is directly caused by the semi-imposition of the Southern Interconnection will not help them much either.

And perhaps it is some cosmic justice that the political options SDP, NiP, and NS find themselves in the shoes of the SDA, which they accused of being an accomplice during the first HDZ blockade. Likewise, perhaps it is cosmic justice that those who agreed to be in power by usurping the political right of Bosniaks and the anti-civilizational suspension of the FBiH Constitution end up as technological political waste, packed into a barrel and shipped to the dump by the eternal HDZ.

Which essentially leads us to the conclusion that everyone is transient and expendable, only the HDZ is eternal, and with that we open the question of who is so strong and powerful that they keep one political party at the top of the political pyramid for three decades almost continuously.

The answer is both difficult and easy to find, but it is irrelevant, because the bigger problem is the fact that in Sarajevo, in those three decades, they could not agree to define five key elements under which they would draw red lines.

And until they come to their senses and do that, there will always be crises produced by the HDZ, and paid for by the Sarajevo parties.

So that we don't have to answer how the FBiH Government functions, I remind you in advance that the Government of Fadil Novalić also functioned, only that after everything, Fadil ended up in prison, and Jelka Milićević in the FBiH Banking Agency.

A word to the wise is enough, I don't know if it is for Nikšić!