KALUŽA: SRPSKA POSITIONED ITSELF AS RELIABLE PARTNER

BANJA LUKA, SEPTEMBER 23 /SRNA/ - International relations expert Lučiano Kaluža told SRNA that the leadership of Republika Srpska had managed to position itself as a reliable partner to the world's highest-ranking officials, which is much more important than speeches at the UN, such as the address by Bosniak member of the BiH Presidency Denis Bećirović, which will be forgotten.

Commenting on the activities of Serb member of the BiH Presidency Željka Cvijanović in New York during the UN General Assembly session, including her attendance at a reception hosted by US President Donald Trump, Kaluža said that meetings with international officials were more important for building relations than speeches at international institutions themselves.

"Mutual trust established between partners is the highest form of cooperation, and Željka Cvijanović has gained significant trust from institutions within the United States and the Trump administration," Kaluža said.

He stressed that this applied not only to Cvijanović, but also to the institutions and current leadership of Republika Srpska, which had positioned themselves as a reliable partner.

"A reliable partner means an interlocutor with whom agreements can be reached, who understands the new geopolitical relations and is ready to engage in dialogue on an equal footing. The greatest success of the institutions of Republika Srpska is that they have managed to position themselves as trusted institutions in the eyes of the world's highest-ranking officials," Kaluža stressed.

He added that direct meetings and building mutual trust were most important for establishing such relations, while speeches at the UN would be forgotten.

Bećirović's address to the UN General Assembly, Kaluža said, showed that there was no possibility of creating a common foreign policy, which had long ago been dismantled by political Sarajevo.

"Bećirović's address is nothing new in the context of previous addresses by Presidency members from the Bosniak people. He spoke on behalf of that one people and did not present an agreed position, which shows what BiH actually is," Kaluža said.

He said that BiH had a tripartite foreign policy and assessed that joint action on the international stage was further complicated by internal political disagreements.

"Republika Srpska has accepted this, and there is no possibility of creating a common foreign policy that was long ago dismantled and deliberately undermined by political Sarajevo and two peoples in BiH," Kaluža stressed.

Kaluža said that Bećirović had emphasized the importance of peace in his speech, but that instead of addressing political representatives in BiH, he had once again turned to international actors and calls for their involvement in BiH's internal affairs.

"He does not address Banja Luka or Mostar, nor does he extend a hand to build peace within BiH. He is seeking the implementation of peace according to his perception, with a certain degree of pressure from the international community," Kaluža said.

Speaking about Bećirović's statements regarding Republika Srpska, the Dayton Peace Agreement and the issue of property, Kaluža assessed that his address remained stuck in the early 1990s and did not reflect the political changes that had taken place in BiH over the past three decades.

"The division of BiH has reached a political culmination," Kaluža said.

He assessed that property was one of the key contentious issues between the entities and BiH institutions, and said that any potential transfer of property to BiH institutions would constitute interference in the competences of Republika Srpska and a violation of the Dayton Peace Agreement.