The Russian Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina emphasized that the claim by the German Embassy that the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) selected Christian Schmidt as High Representative is false, as no actual selection took place due to Russia’s opposition, Euronews reported.

“Christian Schmidt is a self-proclaimed official who lacks legitimacy. We proposed ways for Schmidt to correct the situation, but he, likely due to his own hesitation or under pressure from his ‘partners,’ chose the method of undermining Dayton, which led to the largest crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Just as we warned,” the Russian Embassy stressed.

According to the embassy, all previous High Representatives were selected by consensus of all PIC Steering Board members, while the non-consensus candidacy of Christian Schmidt this time was pushed through despite established practice.

“Schmidt is not a High Representative because he is the only one in the entire post-Dayton history who did not receive approval from the UN Security Council—which is absolutely necessary for the legitimacy of the High Representative. This approval was granted to all previous High Representatives through a UN Security Council resolution,” the Russian Embassy noted.

The embassy recalled that another German candidate—Christian Schwarz-Schilling—also received Security Council approval, albeit only in the form of a letter exchange between the UN Secretary-General and the Security Council President.

Regarding what they call the hypocritical references to UN Security Council Resolution 1031, Annex 10 of the Peace Agreement, and other resolutions, these define the procedures for the lawful High Representative, which Christian Schmidt does not follow.

“We understand that it is difficult for the partners to admit that they have actually carried out a coup in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” the Russian Embassy commented on the statement by the German Embassy that Schmidt was appointed according to established rules for High Representatives.

According to the Russian side, “Schmidt was nominated by Germany and selected by the PIC Steering Board in full accordance with international law and the relevant UN Security Council resolutions, beginning with Resolution 1031 (1995).” | BGNES