Bundestag members demand tougher sanctions against Milorad Dodik

Members of the Bundestag discuss the continued participation of German troops in Operation Eufor Althea and call for tougher sanctions against Milorad Dodik.

Today, the German Bundestag discussed Bosnia and Herzegovina and the continued participation of German troops in Operation EUFOR Althea. The German Federal Government had previously tabled a motion stating that this European country would continue its participation in Operation Althea.

The Federal Government has reported that the quest for autonomy within the Republika Srpska entity is increasingly undermining the functional integrity of the country as a whole and that Operation Eufor Althea has an important role to play in maintaining a secure and stable environment.

During the half-hour debate in the Bundestag, the secessionist intentions of Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik and his megaphones, as well as the malign influence and attempts by Moscow to destabilise the Western Balkans, were clearly revealed. The question of further cooperation and support for EUFOR Althea has been referred for further proceedings.

The situation is still fragile because there is someone, and I want to emphasise this explicitly, like Milorad Dodik, who is working with his team in Republika Srpska to secede from Bosnia and Herzegovina. That is why we need to ensure stability in the region through the EU-led Operation Althea. Dodik wants to deepen the divisions. And here we see how dangerous nationalisms are. We see this in the region too. And we see what happens when we do not react, said Gunther Krichbaum, Minister of State for Europe at the German Federal Foreign Office.

He recalled the threats made against the former German Minister for Europe, Anna Lührmann, and added that for all these reasons, sanctions against Dodik should be imposed and continued. Expected messages and verbal attacks by the AfD on Christian Schmidt, the High Representative in our country.

The debate stressed that the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina should do more to confront the past and find common answers to the question of building a stable society. The EU, especially France and Germany, can help with its experience. In other words, a stable society in and around the country is the only alternative to missions, says former Bundestag member Josip Juratovic.

He expects that participation in Operation Eufor Althea will be extended. The left has also criticised Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic for his support for Dodik.

Participation in Operation Althea perpetuates a situation in which, even three decades after the war, Bosnia and Herzegovina is not a sovereign state, but an externally supported structure, politically divided, institutionally blocked and without sustainable legitimation from within. The central element of this structure is the Office of the High Representative, said Dr Anna Rathert, AfD Member of the Bundestag.

She stressed that the AfD rejects the continued participation of German soldiers in Operation Althea. The Federal Government reiterated its messages on the importance of EUFOR’s Operation Althea.

On behalf of the Federal Government, we demand that the mandate of EUFOR Althea remains unchanged. This means that we intend to continue to contribute 50 troops to the operation, said Dr Nils Schmid, Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Ministry of Defence.

Other parliamentary parties have also supported continued participation in Althea.

Vucic devoted part of the meeting of the Serbian National Security Council to the Dodika Alliance

The Western Balkans cannot wait for the European Union to finish its homework. We must deliver on our promise and continue to prioritise the Western Balkans, just as the previous government did. Because one thing is absolutely clear. The population sees its future in the EU and nowhere else, and we should take advantage of that, said Bundestag MEP Boris Mijatovic (Alliance 90/Greens).

Bundestag MEP Peter Beyer of the CDU/CSU group warned that Russia was working to destabilise the Western Balkans. He also said that EUFOR Althea was a bulwark against the spread of authoritarian zones of influence in Europe.

Bundestag MEP Adis Ahmetovic (SPD) stressed that EUFOR’s Althea mandate is important for peace, stability and our country’s European path. Ralph Edelhäußer of the CDU/CSU also stressed that Operation Althea is currently irreplaceable.

It is working, creating space for dialogue and development in the Western Balkans, said Bundestag MEP Edelhäußer, stressing the need to send a common signal that Europe stands firmly by its neighbours.

Krichbaum said that we need to ensure stability in the region through the EU-led Operation Althea.

The Ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina to Germany, Dr Damir Arnaut, said that there had been a substantive discussion and that the first reading of the Federal Government’s proposal had been successful.

“Full support for the ruling CDU/CSU-SPD coalition and the Green opposition, condemnation of secessionist attacks on Bosnia and Herzegovina, both internal and external, support for the rule of law and democratic forces in both entities. A successful first reading,” said Ambassador Arnaut at X.

A difficult situation

Josip Juratovic, former Member of the Bundestag, former SPD rapporteur in the Bundestag’s European Policy Committee and former chairman of the parliamentary group for the Western Balkans, believes that the mandate of Operation Althea will be extended, especially as it concerns BiH’s security in an unstable regional environment, mainly due to its eastern neighbours. Juratovic points out that a second debate and conclusion is expected in two weeks’ time.

Meanwhile, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic convened a meeting of the National Security Council, where, according to Anadolu Agency, he spoke about the informal document of Germany and France concerning our country and, in particular, the RS entity.

This document complicates the situation of Republika Srpska. The meeting defined the guidelines, gave tasks and guidelines on how Serbia will respond to it, Chief of the General Staff of the Serbian Armed Forces Milan Mojsilovic said, according to Tanjug.

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