Lajčak hits back at Koštunica's Dayton accusation

Miroslav Lajcak dismissed PM Vojislav Kostunica's claims that his decisions breached the Dayton peace deal. The high international representative in Bosnia said late Thursday that the move to change the way in which decisions are made in the Bosnia-Herzegovina Council of Ministers "in no way violated the Dayton agreement and the Constitution of Bosnia-Herzegovina, but adapted the work of the Council of Ministers with the Constitution." Lajcak hits back at Kostunica's Dayton accusation "Prime Minister Kostunica failed to state a single fact on the basis of which it could be concluded that the decision jeopardizes the existence of Republic of Srpska," Lajcak stated, adding that the Office of High Representative sent a legal explanation of his decisions to Kostunica on October 24. Lajcak also flatly dismissed any "artificial linking" of the Dayton Peace Accords and Resolution 1244 of the UN Security Council on Kosovo, Beta news agency reported. Changes introduced by Lajcak envisage the lowering of the number of votes from entities and constitutive nations needed for bringing decisions in the Council of Ministers and Parliament of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and in RS they have been interpreted as opening up the possibility for the Serb representatives in these institutions to be outvoted. The head of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency, Zeljko Komsic, and Presidency member Haris Silajdzic fiercely condemned Kostunica's statement. Silajdzic said it represented "flagrant interference in the internal affairs of Bosnia-Herzegovina." Komsic said that Kostunica should "keep his hands off Bosnia-Herzegovina, because they might get slapped." Commenting on Kostunica's statement, who said that "the aim of Miroslav Lajcak's measures and of Ahtisaari's plan is the abolition of Republic of Srpska and the unilateral declaration of independence of Kosovo and Metohija," Komsic said that "Kostunica's statement has finally unveiled all of Belgrade's shady political games with Bosnia-Herzegovina." "It would be better for Kostunica to deal with the issues that are his job, the future of Serbia and its citizens, i.e. his own country, and to keep his hands off Bosnia-Herzegovina because they might get slapped. And he should remember how one of his predecessors ended up - (Slobodan) Milosevic," Komsic stated. Commenting on the statement of the head of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency, the Serbian prime minister's adviser for the media, Srdjan Djuric, said yesterday that "Komsic's uncivilized vocabulary is only further deepening the crisis that has been caused by Lajcak's measures." "Komsic's primitive, impertinent and pugnacious statements are only confirming the necessity of a decisive defense of the Dayton agreement, which guarantees the entity's status and the preservation of Republic of Srpska," Djuric told Beta.

Lajčak hits back at Koštunica's Dayton accusation

"Prime Minister Koštunica failed to state a single fact on the basis of which it could be concluded that the decision jeopardizes the existence of Republic of Srpska," Lajčak stated, adding that the Office of High Representative sent a legal explanation of his decisions to Koštunica on October 24.

Lajčak also flatly dismissed any "artificial linking" of the Dayton Peace Accords and Resolution 1244 of the UN Security Council on Kosovo, Beta news agency reported.

Changes introduced by Lajčak envisage the lowering of the number of votes from entities and constitutive nations needed for bringing decisions in the Council of Ministers and Parliament of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and in RS they have been interpreted as opening up the possibility for the Serb representatives in these institutions to be outvoted.

The head of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency, Željko Komšić, and Presidency member Haris Silajdžić fiercely condemned Koštunica's statement. Silajdžić said it represented "flagrant interference in the internal affairs of Bosnia-Herzegovina."

Komšić said that Koštunica should "keep his hands off Bosnia-Herzegovina, because they might get slapped."

Commenting on Koštunica's statement, who said that "the aim of Miroslav Lajčak's measures and of Ahtisaari's plan is the abolition of Republic of Srpska and the unilateral declaration of independence of Kosovo and Metohija," Komšić said that "Koštunica's statement has finally unveiled all of Belgrade's shady political games with Bosnia-Herzegovina."

"It would be better for Koštunica to deal with the issues that are his job, the future of Serbia and its citizens, i.e. his own country, and to keep his hands off Bosnia-Herzegovina because they might get slapped. And he should remember how one of his predecessors ended up - (Slobodan) Milošević," Komšić stated.

Commenting on the statement of the head of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Presidency, the Serbian prime minister's adviser for the media, Srđan Đurić, said yesterday that "Komšić's uncivilized vocabulary is only further deepening the crisis that has been caused by Lajčak's measures."

"Komšić's primitive, impertinent and pugnacious statements are only confirming the necessity of a decisive defense of the Dayton agreement, which guarantees the entity's status and the preservation of Republic of Srpska," Đurić told Beta.