Lazović: The American resolution aims to push BiH faster into the EU and NATO

(Patria) - Member of the SPD Presidency, Miro Lazović, told N1 that he is not surprised by the progress report of BiH towards the EU, but he is surprised by the "increased activity of Brussels which in recent days has been intensively warning BiH about the implementation of the EC Opinion with 14 infamous conditions and public statements by their committees warning that we are far from the EU".

"I want to be optimistic that at the beginning of next year, the activities of domestic politicians, with the pressure and activities of the EU and the American administration, will result in us getting candidate status for EU accession in 2021," Lazović said in Novi dan.

He emphasized that "political blockades in BiH have existed since 1995 and that it has always been a playground for political disputes".

"The report talks about omissions that current and past authorities have not made. The European Commission is seeking faster progress in fulfilling the conditions. Political blockades will continue to be present, especially when it comes to the implementation of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg Sejdić-Finci or the adoption of certain amendments to the Constitution regarding the Election Law. It is optimistic that the EC Foreign Affairs Committee has adopted its public positions calling on BiH to align its Election Law with European principles and standards. It is good that the American resolution is emerging, which builds on EU initiatives. If all this is taken into account, one should be optimistic," said Lazović.

Speaking about the US Congress resolution, he said that the US administration had been quite passive regarding the implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement, and that because of this, Russia, with its interests, had entered the political space of this region.

"I think that is the reason why the US administration has become more involved. The resolution comes at a time when the 25th anniversary of Dayton is being celebrated, America is its creator and has the responsibility and obligation to monitor its implementation and correct the injustices embedded in the Constitution. I am pleased that this American resolution builds on the EU and calls on BiH to align its constitutional reforms with European principles and standards. The resolution aims to change the political situation in BiH in the sense of pushing BiH faster into the EU and NATO," said Lazović.

He expressed concern about the resistance to BiH's path to the EU, which, as he said, comes "from the Čović-Dodik tandem", but also from "Croatia and Serbia".

"This is a coordinated political activity of Zagreb and Belgrade regarding the future of BiH, motivated by the desire to include HNS and HDZ BiH in the election law structures in such a way that the election of the BiH Presidency member, which is the only sore point for them, is elected from the ranks of HDZ, not Croats. This is contrary to what the American resolution and the report from Brussels say," he added.

He emphasized that constitutional changes are key to BiH's progress because the current one affirms ethnic divisions, policies that divide BiH, and bad policies are built upon it.

"The constitution of any country is the foundation of the state, and the foundations of BiH are bad. If there are no changes, BiH will remain a hostage of ethnic divisions. I remember the talks in November 1995, we warned Richard Holbrooke that the constitution of BiH, as drafted by Dayton, could not build a stable state. We were aware of the weaknesses, but we encountered a statement that said, 'You will have to live with this constitution for 15 years, after which the time for change will come.' I wouldn't say it was a plan that took into account BiH's interests. They were in a hurry, Clinton was running for a second term and needed an international project, and that was BiH, where the war needed to be stopped. They didn't think much about the future. They had a sincere intention to make it multi-ethnic and civic, but after 1994, the US administration slipped towards entity division. I think the US administration is finally aware of this and will strive to correct it in the coming period, and that is expected of it," said Lazović.

He believes that it would be best if "domestic actors were aware of the necessity of changes that would make every BiH citizen a person living in a stable and functional state", but he is not sure that will happen.

"I am not sure that blockades will be removed on this form of two entities - three peoples solely by the force of political actors, because they build power on these divisions. Pressure will have to come, and I think it is accelerating these days. The 'mini Schengen' project raises hope that the region could remove political blockades through economic issues. Bosnians and Herzegovinians should be cautious, they should move towards Schengen, but demand that blockades that could jeopardize BiH's European path be removed," concluded Lazović.