SARAJEVO - Reactions to the Belgrade-Pale Agreement

ANTI-CONSTITUTIONAL AND UNLAWFUL DOCUMENT

Sarajevo, 3 March, 1997 (AIM)

"The agreement on special relations of Republica Srpska and FR Yugoslavia signed in Belgrade on 28 February this year, is contrary to the B&H Constitution and Dayton peace accords", it is said in the statement for the public of the President of the Presidency of B&H Alija Izetbegovic and Co-Chairman of the Council of Ministers, Dr Haris Silajdzic.

After the legal experts from the Federation had analyzed the Agreement which was signed in the name of RS and the FRY by member of Presidency of B&H Momcilo Krajisnik and Yugoslav President Zoran Lilic, respectively, high B&H officials declared that it was unacceptable. In an extensive statement for the public, among other, they said the following:

"The agreement refers to spheres which are in exclusive jurisdiction of B&H institutions and therefore cannot be subject to special relations between entities and neighbouring countries. These are: foreign policy, foreign trade, customs policy, citizenship, political asylum, implementation of international regulations in the sphere of criminal law, establishment of international communications and others. The agreement also regulates the regime of crossing the state border, although internationally recognized state border has been established between B&H and Yugoslavia, so that agreements about this issue can be concluded only between the state of B&H and the state of Yugoslavia".

In the statement issued by Izetbegovic and Silajdzic it is said that the same refers to the question of succession of former Yugoslavia which is also the subject of the agreement:

"Only the state of Bosnia & Herzegovina is the subject of succession, as already decided by the International Conference on former Yugoslavia. The Serb entity is not at all competent in this respect, especially not to sign separate agreements about it".

The military aspect of the signed agreement, especially the announcement of a separate military agreement between the Serb entity and FR Yugoslavia, implies an imbalance of relations established by the Dayton accords and may threaten peace in the entire region.

"The agreement shows that the regime in Belgrade has not given up aspirations to B&H although it has taken the obligation as a signatory of the Dayton accords. On the contrary, this agreement is an obvious and publicly stated expression of still present aspirations to Bosnia & Herzegovina. The leadership of the Serb entity persistently refuses implementation of provisions of the B&H Constitution which refer to foundation of a central bank and a single currency, return of refugees, establishment of institutions of B&H, and extradition of persons wanted by the International Tribunal for war crimes in the Hague. Those who wish to exercise the right to special relations of entities with the neighbouring countries, pursuant the Constitution, must previously carry out constitutional obligations which are the precondition for establishment of special relations. Yugoslavia has not carried out the obligations taken by signing the peace contract either, since it has not established diplomatic relations with B&H and, without these relations, special relations with entities cannot be established", it is said in the statement.

Due to the listed facts, President of the Presidency Alija Izetbegovic and the Co-Chairman of the Council of Ministers, Dr Haris Silajdzic, believe that the agreement between the Serb entity and the new Yugoslavia has been made with the intention to obstruct the Dayton accords and to further unstabilize Bosnia & Herzegovina.

Close associate of President Izetbegovic, Mirza Hajric claims that with this act, "member of Presidency from among the Serb nation, Momcilo Krajisnik has exceeded his authority", because, according to his words, "only officials of the Serb entity can sign contracts in the jurisdiction of Republica Srpska, and members of institutions of B&H, and that is what Krajisnik after all is, should behave according to rules of operation of these institutions".

"Momcilo Krajisnik has not even correctly informed the other members of the Presidency about this agreement. At the last session of the Presidency he did announce that the Serb entity was preparing a contract with FR Yugoslavia, but he did not say it would be signed so soon. The Presidency was not informed about the text of the contract on the occasion either", says Hajric.

According to information obtained by AIM, lawyers of the Office of the High Representative of the international community in B&H, are also carefully studying the signed agreement. The office of the High Representative had reached a decision that Serb authorities cannot authorize Krajisnik to sign international agreements in the name of Republica Srpska. At the regular press conference of international organizations in Sarajevo, spokesman of the Office of the High Representative Colum Murphy declared that he considered "this agreement as just a draft and something that has no legal validity until approved by the Assembly and the Parliament of B&H". Murphy added that the agreement should not have been signed without previous agreement of Republica Srpska with its federal partner.

"This draft for me is, I hope temporary, return to the old rhetoric of Republica Srpska", declared Murphy on Monday. According to his words, the agreement is not in the spirit of the Dayton peace accords and cannot be considered, "either as legal or illegal", until unapproved by B&H Assembly.

Political parties from the territory of the Federation also agree with the assessment of high state officials. President of the Executive Board of the Union of B&H Social Democrats, Sejfudin Tokic, stresses that, in view of the provisions of the Constitution of B&H, the said agreement can be treated only as an - anti-Constitutional document:

"I politically assess that the agreement between Lilic and Krajisnik is aimed at testing the international community and the internal public opinion on the possibility of persisting with the project from Karadjordjevo. The said agreement unfortunately is a regression of relations between B&H and Yugoslavia and it additionally complicates the situation in this part of Europe", Tokic says. According to his words, the UBSD is in favour of the closest possible cooperation among countries in this part of Europe, but "this cooperation must be based on principles of mutual respect of sovereignty and integrity of territories of states".

Vice-President of the Muslim Bosniac Organization, Mujo Kafedzic, claims that "this is a dangerous document", and that it is a tactical moves aimed at testing readiness of the international community to protect integral B&H:

"It is dangerous because it has all characteristics of an international document made to the detriment of B&H. If observed in the context of the general situation on the territory of Bosnia & Herzegovina (developments in Mostar, arbitration about Brcko, strained relations between the SDA and the HDZ) it is not difficult to conclude that Republica Srpska has chosen a moment which will additionally complicate the situation in B&H and question its survival as a state", says Kafedzic.

Media from the territory of the Federation of B&H received the text of the agreement only on Sunday evening, so that the public in this space has been informed about the contents of the Belgrade-Pale agreement with a delay of three days.

Sandra KASALO