| Russian envoy: Bosnia no “powder keg” |
| 2 November 2009 | 12:39 -> 18:51
| Source:
Tanjug, Večernje novosti |
SARAJEVO --
Russian ambassador to Sarajevo Aleksandr Kharchenko said that "he would not classify Bosnia-Herzegovina as a powder keg”.
He also said that Russia supports the territorial integrity and sovereignty of that country.
“Russia does not believe that Bosnia-Herzegovina is a powder keg and believes that, despite the radicalization of the situation, there is a chance for the domestic politicians to reach an agreement,” Kharchenko said.
The ambassador, who spoke ahead of Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's visit, said that an agreement between the three constitutive peoples regarding constitutional reforms in possible, but that it will not be a fast process.
“Any change to the Dayton agreement, and to the Constitution, can only be a domestic product, the role of the international community should be advisory,” Kharchenko added.
He said that Russia supports the continuation of dialogue, but that the "priority is the transition of the Office of the High Representative (OHR)", Deutsche Welle reports.
“After the transition of the OHR into the role of a special EU envoy, if there is desire for doing so, the issue of constitutional changes also can be discussed through domestic talks and the help of the international community,” stated Kharchenko.
The top Russian diplomatic envoy to Bosnia told the Federal TV in Sarajevo that he supports Republic of Srpska (RS) Prime Minister Milorad Dodik, "when his stance is in accordance with Dayton principles”.
Kharchenko stressed that the upcoming Lavrov visit to Sarajevo will be a chance for strengthening of relations between the two countries.
He added that Russia "wants to develop economic relations with Bosnia-Herzegovina, not only the RS".
Lavrov is scheduled to visit Sarajevo on November 5.
Balanced solutions
In an article published on Monday, Belgrade daily Večernje Novosti reminds that Kharchenko – Moscow's newly-appointed ambassador to Bosnia – also represented Russia in the negotiations over the Kosovo status.
The newspaper asked about his appraisal of the situation in the province at this point.
"This kind of Kosovo we will not recognize in any way. There is plenty of evidence that the current solution is not good. Neither the standard of living, nor any other standard has been improved. There is a high rate of criminal activity and crime, while the province has been de facto partitioned. For that reason, Kosovo remains the region's and Europe's 'black hole' with this solution," said the Russian diplomat, and continued:
"A unilateral solution is not good and it is not well-founded. As a member of the Contact Group and the negotiating troika I can say that in 2007, there was room for negotiations. A lack of progress in negotiations cannot be an excuse for unilateral solutions. If there's no progress, negotiations must become even more intensive. If we all had a balanced relation toward the Kosovo negotiations then we would also have a balanced solution."
|
search b92.net
B92 live 
"The situation in Europe is dire. After years of profligate spending, Greece is becoming overwhelmed. Barring some sort of large-scale bailout program..."... 
What we need in Belgrade, really, is a suspension bridge. We need a bridge that will suspend our doubts about ever having enough viable bridges. We need a bridge that will suspend our disbelief about the dangers
...
