76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly
UN Security Council debate on Bosnia and Herzegovina
Delivered by Ambassador Sven Jürgenson
November 13, New York
Estonia just supported the EUFOR Althea’s operational rollover for 12 months, as the Operation is a strong contributor to the country’s efforts in maintaining a safe and secure environment, which is particularly crucial considering the current political crises in Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, we would have liked to see the references to the Office of the High Representative, to the previous resolutions and to BiH’s European perspective in the resolution and we regret that that the Council was not able to reiterate its positions about these important elements.
Let me make it clear, the work of the High Representative is extremely necessary in order to mitigate risks to stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina and we strongly support the continuation of the effective Office of the High Representative. We thank Mr. Schmidt for his comprehensive and sincere report on the developments in the country.
On the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, we would like to express our concern about the prolonged political crisis and we condemn the blockage of the State institutions. We urge the leaders of the political parties to refrain from any political steps that would lead to further divisions and destabilization of the country. We believe the solutions are possible, through dialogue and full return to institutions.
Estonia strongly supports Bosnia and Herzegovina’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and the aspiration of its citizens to advance towards the European Union. The leaders must always put the interest of the people first. Therefore, we encourage the leaders in Bosnia and Herzegovina to jointly continue to take forward the implementation of the 14 key priorities of the European Commission’s Opinion on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s application for EU membership – reaffirmed lately at the EU-Western Balkans Summit. The country should show commitment most of all to sustainable peace, stability and meaningful reconciliation.
We call on BiH leaders to focus on the electoral and constitutional reform to ensure implementation of important judicial decisions of the European Court of Human Rights and to take into consideration the decisions of the BiH Constitutional Court, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR), the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) and Venice Commission recommendations on election integrity. Keeping this in focus, would also help to improve the rule of law. We are pleased that several good changes have taken place in the Brčko District, in particular towards the implementation of the reform-related laws and their harmonization with the EU standards.
We encourage BiH authorities to implement the revised National War Crimes Processing Strategy adopted by the Bosnia and Herzegovina Council of Ministers, especially as the nationalistic and divisive rhetoric in the country has continued. We would like to reiterate that spreading provocative rhetoric, denying war crimes, glorifying convicted war criminals and downplaying the Srebrenica genocide in any way is unacceptable.
We also encourage BiH to invest in combatting violence against women and implement Women Peace and Security agenda in an inclusive manner. People in BiH, especially young people deserve a greener, more sustainable, more digital and more prosperous future. And we should work towards that goal. We are pleased that the UN is implementing Dialogue for the Future project which seeks to enhance the local dialogue platforms for civil society, youth and women’s organizations.
Unfortunately, the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic is not over. It is important to speed up vaccination and to boost the economic recovery. We commend the UN bodies for providing assistance during pandemic and highlight the EU’s donation of over 1.3 million doses of vaccines for Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Finally, let me reiterate our call on the leaders of BiH to work in solidarity and unity. We encourage them to work closely with the Office of the High Representative and implement all necessary reforms.
Thank you!