GOGANOVIĆ: HELEZ'S RHETORIC HAS BEEN CAUSING UNREST AND CONCERN AMONG BiH ARMED FORCES MEMBERS FOR SOME TIME

ISTOČNO SARAJEVO, SEPTEMBER 11 /SRNA/ – Deputy Minister of Defence in the Council of Ministers Aleksandar Goganović told SRNA that he does not know who is behind the open letter of the BiH Armed Forces officers, but that, according to his knowledge and experience within the defence system, most of the problems outlined in the letter are real and present, and that he himself has pointed to them in the previous period.

"I will not speculate about who the authors are, but I can responsibly say that the conduct and rhetoric of Zukan Helez have been causing unrest and undermining trust for some time, primarily among members of the Serb community, but I also recognise such concerns among Croats, even among Bosniaks. This is no longer a matter of daily politics, but of the functioning of the defence system,” Goganović said.

He stressed that the Armed Forces can function only if every Serb, Bosniak and Croat feels equal, safe and respected.

"But when the Minister of Defence calls Republika Srpska a genocidal entity, calls for its abolition and sends messages such as `we know what we have to do,` then our international partners must also ask themselves, in a human and responsible way, how Serb members feel within a system headed by such a minister. We cannot speak about building trust and professional Armed Forces while at the same time remaining silent in the face of rhetoric that undermines that trust day after day," Goganović emphasized.

He recalled that such rhetoric is not in line with the Dayton Peace Agreement, which is based on the equality of the two entities and three constituent peoples.

"Republika Srpska will not allow the marginalization of Serbs or the questioning of its constitutional position, while peace, stability and security remain our policy," Goganović said.