BUDIMIR: DAYTON AGREEMENT UNDERMINED, RUSSIA ADVOCATES FOR CONSISTENT IMPLEMENTATION

BANJA LUKA, NOVEMBER 3 /SRNA/ – The Minister of the Interior of Republika Srpska Željko Budimir stated that the Dayton Peace Agreement has been significantly undermined and that the current situation does not reflect what was signed 30 years ago.

Budimir emphasized the importance of the analysis presented today in Banja Luka by Russian scholars, regarding what has been done in BiH over the past three decades. "This is important because it allows us to observe the interpretation of the Dayton Agreement from its signing to the present day, and how it has been perceived by the Russians, who actively participated in reaching the agreement," Budimir told reporters ahead of the opening of the international political science conference marking the 30th anniversary of the Dayton Agreement, attended by relevant experts from Republika Srpska and Russia. He reminded that Russia is a guarantor of the Dayton Agreement, one of the major powers actively engaged in its defense and consistent implementation. "We can see how much the Dayton Agreement has been violated and what remains of it today. Russia is actively defending and analyzing this document through the UN Security Council as an important international act," Budimir stressed. The conference is organized by the Faculty of Political Sciences of the University of Banja Luka, in cooperation with the Alexander Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Support Foundation within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.