Moscow believes that the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina has become outdated and discredited and should be closed, according to Yuri Pilipson, director of the Second European Department at the Russian Foreign Ministry.
Pilipson said the OHR had become an instrument of what he described as Western “neo-colonial tutelage” over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“The latest attempts by Western countries to prolong the OHR’s presence in BiH through behind-the-scenes maneuvers, bypassing the UN Security Council, are untenable and undermine the post-conflict settlement,” Pilipson said.
Speaking to TASS, he argued that external administration of Bosnia and Herzegovina had long since become meaningless and was bringing no benefits to the country while contributing to divisions and tensions within society.
According to Pilipson, the role of the High Representative has transformed from that of an international mediator and provider of good offices into an instrument of extensive Western interference in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s internal affairs.
“The external protectorate headed by the High Representative is the main source of instability in the country, provoking domestic political and interethnic tensions and mistrust, essentially creating crisis conditions in order to justify its continued presence in BiH,” Pilipson said.
Moscow therefore maintains that the OHR should be closed and that Bosnia and Herzegovina should move away from the system of international supervision established after the war.
Source: RTRS
