Komšić: Common value is opposition to aggression and violent border changes

(Patria) - The Chairperson of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Željko Komšić, addressed a roundtable discussion on the topic: "Multilateralism, including security and geostrategic issues" during the European Political Community Summit held in Granada.

"The European Political Community is an example of multilateralism used to strengthen commitment to our common political idea of Europe, which is based on liberal democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Our voice against Russian aggression on Ukraine is a clear sign that the European Political Community opposes violent border changes and aggression. This is based on our common value system and the determination to persevere in the fight for these values.

I was in Ukraine two months ago and I firmly believe that the outcome of that war will determine the future of the European political architecture," said Komšić.

He added that multilateralism continues to function within the principles of consultation, inclusivity, and solidarity.

"Multilateralism allows us to reach common opinions and initiate joint actions on various issues, from climate change and response to COVID 19, to support for Ukraine's territorial integrity. However, I believe that sustainable and effective cooperation does not follow. The main challenge is how to implement what has been agreed upon and how to overcome the challenges that multilateralism faces, which relate to the sovereign interests of states.

What we are facing is that the 'ad hoc' interests of sovereign states threaten to undermine the very foundations of multilateralism. When multilateralism is weak, geostrategy dominates and security issues grow. It may be difficult now to distinguish between security and geostrategic issues. Ten years ago, Europe was under terrorist attacks by ISIL. Then, an unprecedented wave of migration caused enormous humanitarian and political problems.

After that, the COVID-19 pandemic called into question the principle of solidarity, as did the economy. Today, we are witnessing cyber threats, the misuse of social networks and artificial intelligence. Growing radical chauvinistic populism profits from uncontrolled cyberspace, the spread of hate speech, and the undermining of efforts to promote human rights and universal values," emphasized Komšić and concluded:

"These challenges undermine the very foundation of multilateralism and our common values on which Europe is built. Moreover, it is no different on a global level. I was recently at the UN General Assembly where all the speeches addressed individual state problems packaged as multilateral topics, while identified injustices and latent hypocrisy in multilateral institutions.

Therefore, my message is that the process of undermining the effects of multilateralism, and questioning the fundamental values shared by civilized societies, directly benefits totalitarian, undemocratic regimes.

I believe this process is intentional. It is an attack on the current world architecture; an architecture based on respect for democracy and human rights. Its intention is to dismantle multilateralism with the support of political players acting within various multilateral institutions who are trying to question the fundamental values on which these multilateral organizations are built and the purposes for which they were built," said Komšić