Permanent Representative of Russia to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said that instability in Bosnia and Herzegovina is the result of a long-standing anti-Serb policy pursued by Western countries that undermine the balance established by the Dayton Peace Agreement.
“We are deeply convinced that the instability in Bosnia and Herzegovina is the result of the West’s clearly anti-Serb policy, which undermines the Dayton system of balancing interests. Only the Dayton principles, based on the equality of the three constituent peoples and two entities, can ensure the necessary balance,” Nebenzya told the Serbian newspaper Politika.
He also pointed to what he described as clear examples of disrespect toward Bosnia and Herzegovina and attempts to interfere in its internal affairs.
“This includes the appointment of German citizen Christian Schmidt as High Representative, contrary to established procedures and without approval from the UN Security Council, as well as all of his subsequent activities,” Nebenzya said.
According to him, the primary role of the United Nations Security Council is to safeguard the Dayton Peace Agreement, which remains the undisputed basis approved by the Council for regulating the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Nebenzya noted that the Balkans remain an active topic on the Security Council’s agenda due to the complex situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the status of Kosovo and Metohija, which he described as the region’s biggest hotspot.
He said that the origins of the current tensions go back to the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia against Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, arguing that those actions worsened the situation not only in the targeted country but in the region as a whole.
Nebenzya also criticized what he called Western efforts to separate Kosovo and Metohija from Serbia, saying that encouraging Albanian nationalism and failing to address violence against Serbs has further destabilized the situation.
He concluded that mediation by the European Union in the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina has failed, arguing that the EU has been unable or unwilling to ensure implementation of agreements meant to protect the rights of Kosovo Serbs.
Source: RTRS
