Komšić: The Croatian people in BiH do not need a guardian from Zagreb, Russia's goal is not for NATO forces to come to BiH

(Patria) - Chairman of the BiH Presidency Željko Komšić welcomed the BiH delegation's exit from the UN General Assembly hall when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the assembly.

"I think it was the right move. If nothing else, then for morale, honor, integrity. What we are seeing in Gaza, the killing of a people, the annihilation, is indescribable," Komšić said on Jutro za sve on BHRT.

When asked about the reactions from Croatia following his address and the accusation that he is endangering the stability of BiH-Croatia relations, Komšić said that this is a standard story.

"It is also pressure on Sarajevo to yield to the demands of Zagreb and HDZ in BiH. I cannot escape the truth. I don't see them denying any fact I stated. We are talking about political views and plans. And it is completely clear that we have different plans when it comes to BiH. It is rude and inappropriate for them to stick their noses so much into BiH's internal affairs. They give themselves the right under the guise of protecting the Croatian people in BiH. And the Croatian people in BiH do not need a guardian. All of us have the right to participate in political life," said Komšić.

Speaking about the High Representative in BiH Christian Schmidt, Komšić said that he himself is endangering his status with his actions.

"It is clear that only the facts have been presented. If the discussion is before the Grand Chamber of the Court in Strasbourg, what are you to think when someone makes a donation of 100,000 euros and then gets involved in a dispute. They get involved in the dispute because Kovačević is also a Croatian citizen and then attacks their own citizen. Everything Schmidt did on election night, suspending the Constitution, is equivalent to favoring Zagreb's political interests," he said.

Komšić announced that he will travel to the US again at the end of October when a UN Security Council session will be held.

"I expect an attack on the OHR institution, and that is also an attack on the Dayton Peace Agreement. That is what we expect Russia to do. If Russia vetoes, the Althea mission will not be extended. In that case, NATO has a full mandate to take over that mission. Logically, I don't think it's worth it for Russia to be against the Althea mission. I think they will attack Schmidt the most," said Komšić.

He is of the opinion that Putin and Moscow will not do anything spectacular because of Milorad Dodik.

"He is important to them as a nuisance in Southern Europe. Dodik is a small puppet on a string there, and Russia uses him to divert attention, mostly from the war in Ukraine."

Komšić emphasized that the European path is blocked due to the constitutional structure of BiH because every level can block decision-making.

When it comes to the Budget of BiH institutions and international obligations, Komšić said that it is "a senseless tug-of-war that leads nowhere."

"The Council of Ministers does not respect the conclusions of the BiH Presidency. This raises the question of what can be done. Judging by Amižić's stance and the lack of courage of his deputy, I don't believe the budget will be adopted," he said, noting that it is already time to propose the budget for 2026.

He also expressed understanding for the reaction of the unions that filed a criminal complaint, and said that the judiciary should do its job.

Komšić emphasized that the way early elections were called is not in accordance with the Constitution, because only a Serb is being elected.

"Someone might appear to challenge this, but you can no longer know what the Constitutional Court will decide," he said.

He also briefly commented on the conversation with the Chargé d'Affaires of the US Embassy John Ginkel and once again emphasized the importance of the Southern Interconnection construction project.

When asked if a trend of joining DF has been established, Komšić said that he is pleased with the reinforcements.

"We did not want to establish any trend, these are quality people who were considering giving up politics altogether. It's good that they didn't give up. They are good and honorable people. I would like it to be a trend, but we will see," he said.

Komšić reiterated at the end that "we must hold the keys to Bosnia tightly and not give them to others."

"This is our country, and if we don't fight for it, no one else will. We decide our own destiny, and when we know what we want, regardless of how great the force standing on the other side is," he said.