The issue of national identity is taken seriously by Balkan people – including the least serious among them.
Tadic: Dodik Has Right to Defend RS Interests
Belgrade | 27 November 2009 |
In a press statement, Tadic said that Dodik has a right to defend Republika Srpska's legitimate interests, media report.
“No one can divide Bosnia and Herzegovina. That would not be good or useful for any country in the region, not only Bosnia and Herzegovina. That is against Serbs’ national interests. Milorad Dodik is a very responsible man and knows very well that it would not be good to make moves that would be against the interest of Serb people,” Tadic said.
His statements come amidst a growing chorus of criticism against Dodik for obstructing efforts to work together with Bosnia’s other entity, the Croat-Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) dominated Federation.
Tadic was reacting to comments from Croatia’s President Stjepan Mesic, who earlier this week accused Dodik of ‘working to destabilise Bosnia-Herzegovina’.
"Europe must allow the high representative in Bosnia to eliminate from politics those who do not recognise and are breaking up Bosnia-Herzegovina, because that stands in the way of stabilisation and European orientation of our region," said Mesic in Berlin.
He went on to say that Dodik is "continuing the policy of Slobodan Milosevic, but now in a different way".
He said the policy is "no longer conducted using tanks, cannons and Srebrenica", but warned that by "not recognising and breaking up Bosnia-Herzegovina, the result could be the same".
Tadic said that statements such as Mesic's “do not bring good to anyone in the region.” He added that he will continue discussing regional political situation with his “friend Mesic” as well as with a new Croatian president that will be elected in the upcoming Croatian Presidential elections.
Earlier this week, Bosnia’s top international envoy delivered a stinging attack on the Bosnian Serb leadership at a UN Security Council speech. He said obstructions by some Serb leaders and their confusion about the division of powers between different levels of government in Bosnia are keeping the country away from prosperity.
He said that “persistent obstructiveness by some Serb political figures” has helped delay key reforms in Bosnia that are necessary for the country to progress towards the EU.
Under the Dayton peace agreement that ended Bosnia’s 1992-95 war the country had been divided into two highly autonomous entities – the Serb-dominated Republika Srpska and Croat-Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) federation. Each part has its own government, parliament and presidency, but the two are linked by weak central institutions.
The international community has for long insisted that more powers be transferred to central institutions in order to make the country more functional, but Bosnian Serbs strongly reject that and insist on retaining their autonomy.
