In a Project Syndicate op-ed, former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt, who served as the first High Representative in BiH, argues that the international community should “step back” from BiH in order to create the conditions for BiH’s own leaders “to sit down and hash out the compromises needed to make the country work.”
Mr. Bildt writes:
In a sense, the office of the international high representative – a post that I was the first to hold after the war – has gone from being part of the solution to part of the problem. On the Bosniak side, its presence invites constant demands for international action to be taken against reluctant Bosnian Serbs or Bosnian Croats, while for the latter groups, it instills fear that such action will indeed be taken. The result is paralysis and distrust, because neither side feels a need to sit down and hash out the hard compromises needed to make the country work.
Mr. Bildt concludes, “Bosnia should no longer be treated as a protectorate. While the EU and the United States remain ready and willing to help, Bosnians ultimately must take responsibility for Bosnia.’
Read more here.
