prijava
SARAJEVO, December 5 (FENA) - Bosnia and Herzegovina needs to implement election results as soon as possible, and ultimately complete the reform of the Election Law, said in an interview with FENA the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Southeast Europe Matthew Palmer.
Palmer emphasized that this reform cannot be imposed by the international community. It must be proposed and implemented by the authorities in BiH because reforms need legitimacy, but in order to achieve that, BiH will need compromise.
“Tensions are normal in a democratic society. Legitimate policies are born through them, through negotiations and reaching compromises. The US will help and support reforms, but we are not here to dictate anything," he added.
He assessed that citizens of all Western Balkan countries want membership in the EU and NATO integrations and that although the process of achieving this goal is difficult and long-lasting, it has no alternative, and on this path they will have unequivocal and lasting support of the United States.
In particular, he added that they will support membership of all countries in the European Union, and membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) for all countries that have expressed their commitment to that goal, excluding Serbia.
As a positive example, he singled out an agreement reached between Macedonia and Greece for the solution of their dispute over the name of Macedonia and Palmer considers that there is no reason for Macedonia not to become a full 30th member of NATO in about 18 months’ time after the implementation of the said agreement.
The agreement will open the door for Macedonia's path to the European Union, and Palmer expressed hope that negotiations would be opened as soon as possible, probably in June 2019, adding that he expects the opening of accession negotiations with Albania at the same time.
Speaking about the relations between Serbia and Kosovo, he noted that the United States strongly supports the EU's process to resolve the issue, saying they want to see an agreement between Belgrade and Pristina on a full normalization of relations that would open the path towards the EU for both, Serbia and Kosovo.
“This would positively contribute to the security situation in the Western Balkans. Such an agreement would promote stability and peace throughout the region," he said.
But when it comes to Kosovo’s imposition of one hundred percent customs tax on products from Serbia and BiH, Palmer called for the abolition of such a decision by the Kosovo authorities because the United States considers it an obstacle to the continuation of the dialogue.
With regards to NATO's decision to invite BiH to submit its Annual National Program, Palmer stated that such decision is very much welcomed in terms of wider regional interest in security matters, which is why the United States will support BiH in defense reform and in its efforts to strengthen its relations with NATO.
Palmer reminded that Serbia is not against NATO but on the contrary, it has productive relations with that military-political alliance, which are currently better and stronger than those between BiH and NATO, given the fact that there is much work ahead of BiH before it achieves the level of cooperation with NATO that Serbia has at the moment.
He referred to the adoption of a resolution on Serbia in the European Parliament calling for Serbia to recognize the genocide in Srebrenica, noting that the facts about the genocide in this Bosnian town are undisputed and recognized by all competent international bodies.
Therefore, it is necessary, says Palmer, that Serbia faces the past in order to move on, but also because of respect for the victims of that horrible crime, which is why he has urged and encouraged all in the region to accept the reality.
When it comes to Russian influence on the countries of the Western Balkans, Palmer believes that Russia is not the one to influence or dictate any country on how and whether to associate itself with the Euro-Atlantic institutions.
Russia's intentions to undermine the aspirations of each country in the region Palmer characterized as destabilizing one, assessing that such behavior is detrimental to regional peace and stability.
“The United States does not impose on the Western Balkan countries what they should do, but the fact is that our vision of the Western Balkans is much more compatible to the one than the countries have chosen for themselves. The ambitions of the countries for EU and NATO membership are a powerful instigator of change,” Palmer explained.
This attitude of the United States towards the countries of the Western Balkans will not change because it is a policy of continuity that the US ambassadors implement in individual countries, regardless of the change of administration.
Asked whether Milorad Dodik's election into the BiH Presidency would possibly jeopardize aspirations of BiH on its path to EU and NATO integration, Palmer said that the United States is dedicated to working with all members of the state presidency, including Dodik.
“Dodik remains under the US sanctions because becoming a member of the BiH Presidency does not fall under any of the criteria for removal of sanctions. Dodik knows what is expected of him in order for the sanctions to be lifted and we would like to see him go in that direction,” underlined Palmer.
Palmer also reminded that the sanctions against Dodik have been imposed due to his anti-Dayton activities, and Palmer says that he must show that he is committed to BiH's territorial integrity, that he is not advocating secession, and added that the sanctions were introduced as a function of the US support to the Dayton Peace Agreement.
He believes that this was efficient in terms of changing the dynamic and direction in order to resist the rhetoric of threats and secessionism that has undermined BiH's stability and promoted a different path.
When it comes to the sanctions imposed against Nikolia Špirić, a senior official of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD), the party headed by Dodik, they have been introduced as means to combat corruption for which Palmer emphasized that it has corroding effect that undermines public confidence in government representatives.
All of the above said testifies to the United States support for peace and stability in the countries of the Western Balkans, including the support to Bosnia and Herzegovina, concluded in an interview with FENA the US Assistant Secretary of State for Southeast Europe, Matthew Palmer.
(FENA) S. R.
