Statement by H. E. Mr. Alija Izetbegovic

Chair of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Millennium Summit of the United Nations

New York, 6 September 2000

Mr. Secretary-General, Co-Presidents, Excellencies:

First, let me thank you for organizing this historical gathering. We extend our congratulations to all those contributing. We fully endorse the efforts for a more efficient Organization of the United Nations that would successfully promote the values contained in the draft Declaration of the Millennium Summit.

Compared to our long and rich history, the dawn of the new millennium closes an extremely difficult and painful decade for Bosnia and Herzegovina. The first half of the decade was marked by battle for independence, and, the other half by the reconstruction of the country and its institutions after a bloody and devastating war. The country and the peoples have survived, but at a terrible and unnecessary price.

Mr. President: the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina depends largely on three factors: 1) The integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina from within, 2) The integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a whole into the Euro-Atlantic institutions and 3) On further regional developments overall.

The integration from within is a painful and slow process, but it is headed in the right direction. I am happy to affirm the good will on behalf of ordinary people to reconcile and to move forward. The problems are in the lack of commitment on the part of some politicians. As a consequence, too many of our refugees are still waiting to return to their homes and some remnants of apartheid are still present

We, who signed the Dayton/Paris Peace Agreement to establish peace, have always understood it to be imperfect. However, we also believed it to be evolutionary and a process that would, over the longer term, gradually establish Bosnia and Herzegovina as a democratic and open member of the family of European counties. Our integration in the Euro-Atlantic institutions, from the Council of Europe to the Partnership for Peace and the NATO, ensures a stable future of our overall region as well. This process of integration is the source of our hopes. It enhances the necessary evolution and encourages the vision of a common future of our peoples. However, in the alternative, if the people feel that they are not welcome in a borderless Europe, the demarcation lines in our region would become even ever more pronounced. This would mean not only an exaggerated separation of peoples and nations but could be an infinite source of conflict.

Bosnia and Herzegovina's membership in the Euro-Atlantic institutions is conditioned upon having an efficient central government, one judicial and legal system, and in the distant future, one Army or at least, a common defense structure. Those conditions are exactly what is needed to make the Dayton Peace Agreement a more just one. In Dayton, our priority was to stop the killing because there had been too much death. We believed that an imperfect peace would be better than a just war and that the natural integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Euro-Atlantic family would help to overcome the shortcomings of such an initially unjust, as well as, imperfect peace.

Finally, Mr. President the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina also depends on the regional developments and vice versa. Most recent developments in Croatia have shown how quickly things can change in the positive direction. We would like to see similar positive events with our neighbor to the east. In Montenegro, democracy and recognition of mistakes from the past go hand in hand. 'Me relationship between our two countries reflects new feelings of good will and mutual interests.

We in Bosnia and Herzegovina are very proud in contributing an integrated police force from Bosnia and Herzegovina to the international peacekeeping efforts in East Timor.

Mr. President, allow me to conclude this short statement on a more personal note. My function in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina ends this October, after 10 years of service. I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to all sincere friends of Bosnia and Herzegovina who were with us in the time of war and in the time of peace and who have always supported the just course of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I would like to assure you of the readiness of my country to contribute to the common wellbeing in order to build a better and more just world.

As a crossroads of civilizations, cultures and religions - Orthodox Christianity, Catholicism, Judaism and Islam, we can contribute much to a new dialogue and culture of peace. Our example teaches what should and what should not be done. It is both a positive and negative lesson to the future generations. I thank you, Mr. President.