Serb member of the BiH Presidency Milorad Dodik says the Dayton Agreement is an international treaty and cannot be changed until two entities and three constituent peoples decide to do so.
Commenting on the statement by US Special Representative for the Western Balkans Matthew Palmer that the Dayton Peace Agreement is subject to change, Dodik stresses the amendments to this agreement have been regulated and says that what former high representatives did backed by previous US policy, which was the breaking of the Dayton Accords, is an absolute violation of international law.
“Simply out of habit, they are trying to keep such kind of story. I believe the fate of BiH depends on whether we will return to the original text of the agreement or it will be devalued by the efforts coming from abroad,” Dodik told Glas Srpske.
Asked if the Republika Srpska National Assembly could ratify the Dayton Agreement, as some lawyers and political scientists claim, Dodik answered positively.
“The National Assembly represents Republika Srpska. Srpska is one of the signatories to all the annexes to the Dayton Peace Agreement, and therefore to Annex 4 called the Constitution of BiH. It is the National Assembly that has the right not only to accept, but to amend the Dayton Peace Agreement which is the only place where a decision or political will about anything can be provided on behalf of Srpska,” Dodik said.
He points out that, as far as Republika Srpska is concerned, the Dayton Peace Agreement is supported in the original form.
“Amending the Dayton Accords also requires our political will. There was not any even when they tried to pressure and condition people. These were irregular conditions for expressing political will,” Dodik said.
He points out that all decisions made by Wolfgang Petrich, Paddy Ashdown and all other high representatives are legally null and void since, as he says, they are based on the non-expression of political will.
“They got themselves Bonn powers for which the then High Representative Westendorp said they were not in line with the Dayton,” Dodik said.
Source: srna
