Žilić: Decisions about BiH must be made in its institutions, calculation equals betrayal

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - DF representative in the Parliament of F BiH Hajrudin Žilić commented on current events in and around BiH. After the session of the UN Security Council, signals coming from the EU and the region, Žilić believes it is time for sobering up and a political response without calculations from all political entities advocating for the survival of BiH. We convey his reflection in full.

„If we do not react, peace will be threatened, and the Dayton Agreement annulled“, these words, from the otherwise measured German politician Christian Schmidt, intended for the UN Security Council, remained on paper, identical to Inzko's letter from May addressed to Brussels, in which, seeking sanctions for Dodik and 10 other officials of the RS entity, he stated „that he is forced to seek sanctions in order to defend BiH“.

The last very turbulent week has offered BiH politicians, and citizens as well, a whole series of sobering messages, resolved certain dilemmas, and forever removed certain misconceptions.

Let's go in order:

-  The cross-visits to Belgrade and Zagreb by Čović and Dodik, it will later turn out, were in the function of harmonizing positions and determining joint directions of action regarding current issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is not difficult to conclude which side is in charge of lobbying in the United Nations and with the „Belgrade son-in-law“, and which in the European Union.

- From the failed attempt at shuttle diplomacy, regarding electoral reform, by Matthew Palmer and Angelina Eichhorst, we learned three things. First, Palmer in his non-paper (if it is authentic, and it is highly likely it is) made it known that there is no „leap into a civic BiH“! Can we assume this is also the position of the USA? Furthermore, Palmer advocates for the urgency of electoral reform due to „Dodik's capitalization of the dysfunctionality of the Federation“, while simultaneously, as a „starting base“ for negotiations, maps parties that do not tie the issue of electoral reform to issues of the functionality of the Federation. Second realization, Eichhorst, by „accidentally“ showing part of the document, made it known to the BiH public that the European Union does not consider sanctions as an option. The third realization goes in the direction that Palmer and Eichhorst will apply the known practice of diplomatic negotiations by putting pressure on the weaker side until an agreement is reached.

-   Unfortunately, we formed positions and defined expectations based on, I would say, unrealistic wishes and invocations by certain media and self-proclaimed analysts, based on proposals by Bode Weber, according to which challenges directed at the security and territorial integrity of BiH, as well as Dodik's adventurism, can be prevented by increasing deterrence capacity and deploying EUFOR and NATO troops in Brčko. In doing so, both Weber and we suppressed the fact that the West, in resolving crises, rarely or almost never combines an increase in military presence and diplomatic efforts.

-  We also realized that the international community in BiH has finally abandoned the „carrot and stick“ strategy, having seen that BiH politicians have become resistant to that model of „training“.

-  We became aware that Belgrade and the RS entity, in conditions of polarized stances of the West and East on issues of Bosnia and Herzegovina, have an indirect possibility of veto in the United Nations Security Council.

-  The manner in which the Security Council Resolution was adopted once again confirmed that, regardless of the strength of arguments, compromise is the prevailing and only possible way of conducting politics in conditions of opposing views.

- By preventing the High Representative from presenting his report to the Security Council, and deleting parts of the Resolution mentioning the OHR and the High Representative, Russian representatives indirectly revitalized and brought to life their unadopted draft Resolution from July, which demanded the closure of the OHR.

- It is difficult to assess the advantage of „sacrificing“ the OHR compared to any kind of military presence in BiH. Regardless of the fact that it is a benign military formation of EUFOR, decision-makers probably considered a number of arguments for and against, and quite certainly that decision was supported by the possibilities of available protective mechanisms. It is quite certain that we cannot view things in black and white and lose sight of a very large number of „shades of grey“.

- Another realization points us to the necessity of assessment in terms of whether we should be concerned and consider indicative the decision of the Russian „Sberbank“ to withdraw from the market in BiH and the region?

In these conditions, the only secure solution for Bosnia and Herzegovina is a sufficiently wise and sufficiently decisive, statesmanlike responsible Bosnian-Herzegovinian policy. A calculating policy in these conditions is equal to a treacherous policy. To begin with, it is necessary to harmonize a joint statement on the principles of electoral reform of all pro-Bosnian political parties participating in the work of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The importance of such an approach is multiple. Besides achieving consensus on a very important issue, another equally important benefit is mapping the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina as the sole place for negotiations and decision-making related to Bosnia and Herzegovina.