![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
West warns Bosnian Serb leader over secession moves Sarajevo, Dec 8 (AFP) Dec 08, 2021 Western countries cautioned Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik on Wednesday, two days before a session of the Serb entity's parliament aimed at launching a process to withdraw from Bosnia's central institutions. Dodik, a former Western protege turned nationalist, has repeteadly raised the question of secession of Republika Srpska -- the Bosnian Serb entity within the divided country -- disgruntled over strengthening Bosnia's central institutions. Bosnia's status was set up by US-brokered Dayton Peace Agreement that divided the country in two entities after the bloody 1990s war-- one Serb and the other Croat-Muslim, united by a central government. The Republika Srpska parliament will discuss withdrawal of the entity from the joint Bosnian army, tax and justice system, set up after the conflict. "Actions taken by any party to undermine the General Framework Agreement for Peace will bear consequences," said representatives of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) in a statement. "There can be no unilateral withdrawal from transfer agreements from the entities to the State" The PIC is composed of representatives of various Western powers and Russia -- which did not sign the statement. Kremlin supports Dodik's actions, and the Bosnian Serb leader met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow last week. Dodik calls Bosnia an "impossible country" and announced in September the creation of the army of Bosnian Serbs, which was heavilly criticised in Sarajevo. But even after he seemed to soften his position after meetings with US diplomats over recent weeks, Dodik underscored on Wednesday he had no intention of abandoning his plan. "Under the peace agreement, Republika Srpska has the right to its army, its justice and its tax system," he said. "We will withdraw our agreement for these three areas."
|
|
All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.
|