RS leader supports "third, Croat entity" in Bosnia

RS leader supports "third, Croat entity" in Bosnia

He was referring to a Croat entity set up during the 1992-1995 war. The post-war Bosnia-Herzegovina is made up of the Serb Republic (RS), and the Muslim-Croat Federation (FBiH).

"Croats used to have this 'state' of their own, Herzeg-Bosnia, but then they made a terrible mistake by renouncing it with the 1994 Washington Agreement," Dodik told the Zagreb daily Jutarnji List. He also "warned about the strengthening of Muslim fundamentalism in Bosnia-Herzegovina."

"I would not hesitate to support Herzeg-Bosnia. I think the official policy of the Republic of Croatia once sacrificed Croat national interests in Bosnia-Herzegovina, accepting that mistake called the Washington Agreement. I have a positive attitude towards Herzeg-Bosnia, and I would not mind if it still existed, but to be truly a republic, and truly have all the prerogatives of a state - the same as the Serb Republic," he said.

The RS president stressed that the RS has had the name entity "wrongly imposed" on it, and that "entity" is "a word that means nothing in itself - that is, it has quite a different meaning than 'a state'."

"The FBiH entity has proved to be dysfunctional and unsustainable, as has this kind of Bosnia-Herzegovina. In the territory of Bosnia-Herzegovina only the RS is sustainable - it could instantly start an independent life. A second viable republic or state would be Herzeg-Bosnia - if it is formed. Bosniaks would have their Bosnia, as their own independent republic or state. Everything else is merely an experiment that proved unsuccessful," said Dodik.

However, he stressed, the issue of re-establishing Herzeg-Bosnia must be articulated by Croat political representatives.

"I think that Croatia is now in a somewhat more comfortable situation as it is no longer burdened by joining the EU and NATO, and as such, can significantly help Croats in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and I would support that. As for what Americans are saying, that there can be no so-called third, or Croat entity, it does not mean anything. They said the same about Yugoslavia, and it still fell apart."

Dodik concluded that Herzeg-Bosnia "can very much become a reality, because, if Croats truly want it and if it is supported by the RS - then Bosniaks, that is to say Muslims, are a dramatic minority in all this."

The RS leader believes that "a loose confederation could be made for now with Croats in Bosnia-Herzegovina - and when the time comes, both the RS and the Croat confederate unit or state would gain independence and break away."

The idea of such an agreement is based on the assumption that combined and united the RS and Herzeg-Bosnia would find this much easier to do than each acting on their own, against Bosniaks who advocate for further centralization and a unitary Bosnia-Herzegovina, he noted.

This assumed Serb-Croat alliance in Bosnia-Herzegovina should, according to Dodik, have "two aspects - a cultural and civilizational one, beside the political."

"We have no reason to shy away from the fact that we, Serbs and Croats, belong to one, common civilization. Although some say that the clash of civilizations does not exist any longer, it is very much a reality... Both Christian peoples in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbs and Croats, are now very endangered by Bosniaks, that is, Muslims, and will be increasingly so as time goes by."