US State Department Counselor Derek Chollet will pay a visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina from November 15-17 to call for dialogue amid a brewing crisis in the multi-ethnic country, the State Department said on Wednesday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th November, 2021) US State Department Counselor Derek Chollet will pay a visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina from November 15-17 to call for dialogue amid a brewing crisis in the multi-ethnic country, the State Department said on Wednesday.
Milorad Dodik, the Serb representative in the country's tripartite presidency, has been threatening to withdraw Bosnian Serbs from central institutions and create a breakaway Serb army, instead of sharing one with BiH. The move comes as part of what Republika Srpska describes as a reassessment of its relations with Sarajevo, following a controversial law on the criminalization of denial of the 1995 Srebrenica genocide.
"Counselor of the U.S. Department of State Derek Chollet will travel to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), November 15-17, to reaffirm U.S. support for BiH's sovereignty and territorial integrity and urge the country's leaders to engage in constructive dialogue," the statement read.
In Sarajevo, Chollet will meet with senior government officials to discuss the state of affairs in the country.
"He will deliver a firm message that any attempt to undo 26 years of peace and progress, through withdrawal from state-level institutions, could violate the Dayton Peace Agreement, create hardship for citizens, and be a major disincentive for investors and source of serious concern for the international community," it added.
Chollet will also meet with High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina Christian Schmidt to discuss the situation in the country.
The 1995 Dayton Agreement is a peace deal that put an end to the longstanding conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Under the agreement, two autonomous entities within the country, Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, were created. The Office of the High Representative (OHR) in Bosnia and Herzegovina oversees civilian observance of the deal.
