The Diplomat
The ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Danka Savic, gave a conference last Tuesday on current affairs in her country entitled “In the Balkan country 30 years after the arrival of the first Spanish contingent“, an event which took place at the Real Sociedad Económica Matritense.
Danka Savic emphasised, first and foremost, during her speech that this was taking place “on the same dates that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina is participating in the public diplomacy campaign under the name 12 Days of Peace”, a campaign that is being carried out “together with the United Nations office in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with other UN agencies and our diplomatic missions around the world”.
“At this moment, we are facing new global challenges,” the Bosnian Ambassador continued, “and, in this context, the European integration not only of Bosnia and Herzegovina but of the whole region is crucial, more than ever, for a stable and secure European future. It is vital to accelerate the EU accession process for the Western Balkans. Granting candidate status to Bosnia and Herzegovina would create a positive momentum in the country, but would also have a positive effect on security and stability in general.”
“We are especially grateful to Spain for its support in the Euro-Atlantic integration process and for its understanding of the challenges Bosnia and Herzegovina faces in carrying out necessary reforms on its path towards the EU. In this context, I would like to highlight the visit of the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, this summer in Sarajevo and Mostar, which was the expression of support for our Euro-Atlantic path”.
Luis Feliu, Deputy Lieutenant General of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) in the Balkan country during the war between 1990 and 2001, then took the floor. In his dissertation, the lieutenant general gave a concise and very entertaining account of the extraordinary and unique characteristics of this conflict, as well as the horrors that were experienced, as it was characterised as a civil war.
