Crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina
What observers in Bosnia and Herzegovina had warned of is now happening: the parliament of the Serb constituent Republic of Srpska in Banja Luka has decided to secede and wants to withdraw from the national army as well as from the central government's judicial and tax system within six months. Is a war looming?
The EU made the nationalists this strong
Poor decisions in Brussels and Berlin have brought about this crisis, writes Erich Rathfelder, the Balkans correspondent for the taz:
“It is probably one of Angela Merkel's big mistakes that she courted the Serbian dictator Alexandar Vučić until the very end. And when Ursula von der Leyen appointed Olivér Varhelyi, a Hungarian diplomat and friend of Orbán, as Enlargement Commissioner for the Balkans, she put the fox in charge of the henhouse. The EU negotiator in Bosnia, Angelina Eichhorst, has strengthened the positions of the Serb and Croat nationalists in recent months. Now we see the results.”
Europe must take resolute action to prevent war
The EU must understand that Bosniaks will not accept the latest developments, Karar comments:
“Bosniaks will never accept the 'de facto' independence of the Republika Srpska. This path could inevitably lead to war. If certain countries and the EU really want to prevent developments that could trigger a war, they must clearly demonstrate the political and military resolve to stand up for the preservation of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a united entity. Unfortunately, they don't want to, which makes war all the more likely.”