SRPSKA ONE STEP AWAY FROM INITIATING ARBITRATION IN THE HAGUE

BANJA LUKA, April 29 /SRNA/ – Republika Srpska is one step away from deciding, for the first time in its history, to address the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in order to expose who is behind the greatest crisis in BiH since the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords, reports Glas Srpske.

The move to address the Court in The Hague was made possible by a resolution adopted by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska in March, based on a proposal from the Assembly's Speaker Nenad Stevandić. The resolution requested arbitration to resolve the dispute between Republika Srpska and BiH, in the capacity of contracting parties to Annex IV of the Dayton Peace Accords, and Annex X, which pertains to the mandate and powers of the High Representative. The deadline for the parties to respond expired at the end of last week, thereby opening the possibility for the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague to rule on the burning issues in BiH. Professor of international law Dragan Dakić believes that a legal case will indeed be opened in The Hague, as BiH is identified as a party in the proceedings for unilaterally altering the annexes of the Dayton Peace Agreement. "The essence is that Republika Srpska claims the incorporation of Christian Schmidt into the legal system of BiH, as done by the Constitutional Court of BiH in 2023, is a violation of Annex IV, which outlines the division of power and jurisdiction in BiH – one of the fundamental aspects of any peace agreement – and of Annex X, which governs the appointment of the High Representative," Dakić stated.