Komšić in Ljubljana: War aims have not been abandoned in BiH, NATO and EU are the only safe havens for the country

LJUBLJANA, (Patria) - Member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Željko Komšić spoke today in Ljubljana at the conference "The Future of Bosnia and Herzegovina: How to accelerate integration into the EU and NATO?" organized by the International Institute for Middle Eastern and Balkan Studies (IFIMES).

Komšić spoke about the importance of Bosnia and Herzegovina becoming a member of the EU and NATO alliance, as well as the problems the country and its citizens face on this path.

"There is a lot of swearing allegiance to the EU in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but there is a lot of demagoguery from politicians," Komšić said, accusing even some European Union officials of having a double policy in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which, he warned, cannot bring anyone any good.

"We need the help of European institutions on our EU path. But we don't just need messages, we need concrete action in BiH. I have too often found myself in a situation to observe double standards of European officials towards BiH. There is no progress with such a policy," Komšić said, emphasizing that he expects the EU to recognize the forces in BiH that are truly committed to the European Union.
 

The member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina said that some parties in BiH want to build a better position for themselves in the country at the expense of democracy, but that such a policy is unfortunately supported by some neighboring countries of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"The Dayton Agreement is being abused and misinterpreted. Collective rights are given more rights than citizens as individuals," Komšić said, noting that these are not the principles of the European Union.

"It should be noted that the EU is based on the principle of protecting the individual, not on the protection of collective rights, which they want to present to us in BiH," Komšić said.

The member of the BiH Presidency said that the war has ended in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but that war aims have not yet been abandoned, and that is why the EU and NATO are the only safe haven for Bosnia and Herzegovina, so that it does not have to think, as he said, whether every other generation in BiH will be caught in some new conflict.

"If this chance is missed now, who knows what will happen afterwards," Komšić said.